In the other forty nine states, Congressional maps in reapportionment are either drawn by legislators, independent commissions or courts – except of course those states that have only one Congressional District. But in Florida, that power now rests with one man – Governor Ron DeSantis.

In Florida, the State Legislature has as of Monday April 11, ceded its authority to draw congressional lines to the Governor. Democracy has officially died in Florida. So therefore, the reapportionment process for congressional districts in Florida has been effectively handed to one individual who has his own unique interpretation of the 14th Amendment and Voting Rights Act

The elected representatives who are constitutionally tasked with this duty have abdicated their responsibility, further consolidating power in the sole hands of Governor DeSantis. This is the same Governor who has made every effort to usurp the authority of local governments, using preemption regularly, while also repeatedly acting as if court judgments he disagrees with do not apply, because after all, as an Ivy League trained attorney, he knows better.

We’ve discussed Hungarian President Viktor Orbán extensively on this site and have said he is the true model for Ron DeSantis (the media and many Democrats assume it’s the clownish, buffoonish and largely ineffectual President Donald Trump, but it’s actually the highly-effective Orbán) and now the model is complete.

This move to consolidate district drawing into the hands of the Governor is so unprecedented and without any sort of historical parallel in recent American History, it’s hard to say anything more. The move is so beyond anything I ever anticipated, that it has left me without appropriate words, but DeSantis, a demagogue whose control of the right-wing media apparatus is complete, is likely to do something in the near future to make even this look like child’s play.

Ron DeSantis plays politics like a blood sport, and he always wins no matter how low he goes.

Will Florida ever get its representative democracy back?