The Legislature will begin its special session next week, but drafting of the base map—the session’s starting point—has already begun. Voting rights groups are upset it isn’t happening in public.
Staff members from the House and Senate are working behind closed doors on a base map, but Florida’s League of Women Voters and Common Cause say that violates the spirit of the Supreme Court’s order. League President Pamela Goodman says the groups have issued a joint letter calling on the Legislature to open the process.
“It just reminds the legislators of the mandates that were laid forth by the Supreme Court,” Goodman says, “and we want to ensure that they are reminded of those mandates of transparency, and that they follow those mandates.”
It’s not clear when lawmakers will reveal their first draft. But a Senate spokeswoman says the maps will be available for review before lawmakers return for session August 10.
