Secretive process to redraw districts may run afoul of Florida voters’ decision | Opinion
No to redistricting
Florida’s Constitution is clear: It is illegal in this state to draw electoral districts with the intent to favor or disfavor a political party or an incumbent. Floridians made sure of that in 2010, when they voted overwhelmingly to add redistricting standards to our state constitution, effectively preventing political gerrymandering.
Despite that, state lawmakers are poised to meet in Tallahassee this month (or next) for a special session on redistricting. Choosing to move forward with redistricting now — with no new Census data and no court order requiring it — gives the impression partisan games are afoot.
Most voters disapprove of the blatant gerrymandering we have seen in states such as Texas and California. A recent poll found that 66% of Floridians said Congress should pass a law prohibiting states from drawing district boundaries to give one party an advantage, consistent with the 63% who approved the Fair Districts Amendments to Florida’s Constitution.
Can voters trust that districts drawn during a secretive process in a hyper-partisan political climate will be in our best interest?
So far, no public meetings have been held to review proposed changes or provide input to lawmakers. Additionally, statements from elected officials in state and congressional offices certainly seem to point at a partisan motivation.
As a trusted nonpartisan organization dedicated to empowering voters, the League of Women Voters of Florida has been advocating for fair and transparent redistricting standards for decades. We were heavily involved in the Fair Districts coalition in 2010 and believe that democracy functions best when voters pick their politicians, not when politicians pick their voters.
Ultimately, we hope the Florida Legislature will respect the will of the people and reject mid-decade redistricting. Floridians deserve better than a partisan rush job on congressional maps. Our state’s lawmakers must uphold their oath to the state Constitution.
Jessica Lowe-Minor,
president,
League of Women Voters of Florida,
Orlando
Pause and reflect
Re: the April 15 Herald story, “Miami’s Archbishop speaks out about Trump’s feud with Pope Leo” and the same-day opinion by Mary Anna Mancuso, “A president trashing the pope crosses a moral red line.” Pope Leo XIV’s criticism of the spherical combat with Iran, while well intended, reminds me of the papacies of Pius XI (1922-1939) and Pius XIl (1939-1958).
The leadership of the Islamic Republic of Iran has threatened the elimination of Israel and the United States for 47 years. Most of the world’s Jewish people — estimated at more than 14 million — live in both nations.
Pope Leo should step back from his comments and re-examine them in the historical context of the Vatican’s relationship with Nazi Germany (1933-1945). Whether he realizes it or not, his position on the Iran conflict is providing emotional aid and comfort to our enemy and enabling them. The Gospels do not require that approach.
President Trump must carefully filter what he says and writes. He will be 80 years old on June 14 and should know better. The Pope, as leader of the Catholic Church, deserves to be treated with respect. Trump has enough people taking political shots at him without doing it to himself.
Robert E. Panoff,
Pinecrest
Crossing lines
In Mary Anna Mancuso’s April 13 Miami Herald online opinion, “A president cosplaying as Christ and trashing the pope crosses a moral red line,” she is concerned that President Trump’s harsh words about Pope Leo “diminishes the office [Trump] holds.”
This, as opposed to all the other deplorable things Trump has said and done over his first and now second term in office, the ultimate of which is fomenting a rebellion in an effort to overthrow the results of a legitimately conducted election. Harsh words about the Pope are nothing compared to that.
Christopher Cooke-Yarborough,
South Miami
Power colors
The April 15 story, “Miami Beach unveils new Pride walkway to replace rainbow crosswalk FDOT removed,” is such a wonderful dig at the small-minded pettiness and viciousness of Gov. Ron DeSantis and his acolytes. Excellent!
John Saviano,
Miami Beach
Save Biscayne Bay
My family and I grew up near the clear azure waters of Biscayne Bay. The once full-of-life bay is slowly deteriorating and little is being done to save it. With each annual water quality report, we see higher amounts of nitrogen, phosphorus, even bacteria, all released by run-off from our sewage system and farms.
Not only was Biscayne Bay a beautiful scene that seemed straight out of a movie, it was a habitat, a home to an ecosystem of much sea life. But we keep pushing the bay to lengths beyond where it should. Once it reaches its limit, we will lose our bay.
Improvements to our sewer systems and our farms are a must. Runoff and sewage pollution must be reduced. This singular beauty cannot be lost.
Javier A. Cabanes,
Westchester
Democracy at home
Last Sunday, U.S. Rep. Byron Donalds — the leading Republican candidate for Florida Governor — appeared on NBC’s Meet the Press and declared that Cuba “rules with an iron fist,” suppresses free speech and must face full-scale regime change. He is right. Dictatorship is wrong. Authoritarianism is wrong. Freedom matters.
But why does that principle stop at our own borders?
Donalds praised the Trump administration’s blockade of the Strait of Hormuz — an act of war without congressional authorization or accountability to the American people. The guardrails he demands for Cuba, he ignores at home.
Hungarians threw out Viktor Orbán — Trump’s closest authoritarian ally — in a historic landslide. Vice President JD Vance had flown to Budapest days before to campaign for him. The Hungarian people, with record voter turnout, chose democracy anyway. The winner said simply: “Tonight, truth prevailed over lies.”
Americans are paying attention, too.
Lorraine O’Hara,
Stuart
Optional transport
Sometimes innovation comes by brushing off an old solution to a lingering problem. Moving people around Miami is a challenge, but by looking to the past, we can unlock a better future.
In 1913, John Collins completed his wooden bridge stretching from Miami to Miami Beach. As he embarked upon the project, a ferry operator in Miami Beach protested the effort. Bridge boosters argued that ferries couldn’t carry a then-new mode of transportation: the automobile.
Today, driverless Waymo vehicles bring residents and visitors across the Venetian Causeway, the 100-year-old successor to Collins’ wooden bridge. But getting to and from the beach can still be a challenge.
Kudos to Miami Beach Mayor Steven Meiner for blending city and state funds to revive the water taxi and keep it free. As I walk by it and use it, it is exciting to see the excitement. The only challenge ahead may be extending it to seven days a week. Miami’s magic perhaps is blending past and present to forge our future.
John Falcicchio,
Miami
Chi-Town vs Big Apple
Perhaps President Trump was right when he boasted recently, “If I wasn’t in the White House, Leo would not be in the Vatican!”
The Holy Spirit undoubtedly inspired all those cardinals to vote the way they did. And correctly, as it seems it just might take a loving, humble, courageous and truthful servant from Chicago to confront a hateful, transactional, egotistical and delusional businessman from New York.
Now, other Catholic leaders and faithful must stand and support our good pope. They certainly spoke out for Trump in 2024, though they were surely duped by his easily made pronouncements against abortion. We all can now see that Trump is anything but pro-life.
Leo is a hero! And Trump is, well, Trump.
Marcia Braun,
Miami Springs