House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) issued a warning to Florida Republicans as the redistricting battle heats up before the 2026 midterm elections.

“Our message to Florida Republicans is F around and find out. If they go down the road of a DeSantis ‘dummymander’, the Florida Republicans are going to find themselves in the same situation as Texas Republicans,” Jeffries said.

“The Republicans are ‘dummymandering’ their way into the minority before a single vote is cast because they started this war and we’re going to finish it,” he added.

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The New York Democrat’s comments follow Virginia voters approving a mid-decade redistricting referendum that would allow Democrats to redraw the state’s congressional map before the 2026 midterm elections.

Results Are In For Critical Virginia Redistricting Referendum

However, a Virginia judge ruled the referendum unconstitutional and blocked the state from certifying the results.

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“RIGGED ELECTION” – President Trump Comments On Virginia Redistricting Referendum, Judge Rules Proposed Amendment Unconstitutional

The Hill shared further:

Jeffries pointed to three separate local elections in Florida that were recently won by Democrats in areas that are traditional GOP strongholds: The Miami mayor’s race, which was won by a Democrat for the first time since 1997; a state Senate seat in the Tampa Bay area; and a state House seat for the district that’s home to Mar-a-Lago, Trump’s resort and residence.

“The electoral tide is turning in Florida,” he said.

The Democratic leader also noted that, given those recent results, some GOP members of Florida’s House delegation have questioned the wisdom of redrawing the current map, which carries the risk of diluting the Republican advantage in some districts that are now strongholds.

“We agree,” Jeffries said. “But go ahead and make our day.”

DeSantis did not seem phased by Jeffries' remarks.

"Please, be my guest. I will pay for you to come down to Florida and campaign. I'll put you up in the Florida governor's mansion. We'll take you fishing," DeSantis said.

"There's nothing that could be better for Republicans in Florida than to see Hakeem Jeffries everywhere around this state," he continued.

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Fox News has more:

The standoff demonstrates both parties’ resolve to double down on gerrymandering as a strategy central to winning control of the U.S. House of Representatives in the upcoming 2026 midterms.

Since President Donald Trump urged state lawmakers to expand the GOP’s 217-213 majority by eliminating five Democratic seats in Texas, states including North Carolina, Alabama, Louisiana, New York and Georgia have followed suit.

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Most recently, voters in Virginia approved a redistricting effort spearheaded by Gov. Abigail Spanberger, a Democrat, to turn her party’s 6-5 advantage in the Commonwealth into a 10-1 majority by extending Republican-leaning districts into Democratic strongholds.

Florida is developing plans to be next.

With a Republican trifecta and eight Democratic-held districts to carve up, DeSantis has called a special session this week to explore the Sunshine State’s options.

"Today, I announced that I will be convening a special session of the Legislature focused on redistricting to ensure that Florida’s congressional maps accurately reflect the population of our state," DeSantis said in his January announcement, citing changing demographics in the state.

 

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