U.S. Justice Department approves Florida's maps

About our analysis

Lawmakers legally may use political data such as election results or voter registration when drawing the new voting boundaries, but the Senate chose not to include it when drawing its maps as a response to new constitutional requirements that ban legislators from protecting incumbents. The House used political data to draw its maps. That kind of public data helps show how those districts will perform in future elections, so the Times uses it for our analysis, as well.

From the Florida House's redistricting site, MyDistrictBuilder, we downloaded 2008 and 2010 general election results and 2010 voter registration figures. As lawmakers release and revise the maps, we will sort that data by each new district.

In many cases, minority voter registration numbers are lower than the number of minorities in a district who are old enough to vote. But lawmakers, and courts, can only consider the latter category.

For political data, we focused on the 2008 presidential race and the 2010 governor election. If a Democrat won a proposed new district in both years, it is colored blue. If a Republican won both races that district turns red. Green-colored districts switched parties. We also show the margin of victory in each potential district.

Questions about our analysis? Contact Times News Artist Darla Cameron.

About the redistricting process

Florida's Constitution requires the Legislature to convene in the "second year following the decennial census" to reapportion the state in the Senate and House districts and congressional districts. The task seems simple enough: To logically divide the state's
18.8 million residents into 120 House districts, 40 Senate districts and 27 congressional districts. But the process is often fraught with controversy, and almost certain to spawn legal challenges. The Legislature's deadline to draw the new maps is March 9, 2012. But the political fight could drag on for most of the summer.

What districts do you live in currently?

Use MyLawmaker to find your current home district. Enter your Florida address into the box below.

Redistricting public hearings

Public officials held a series of town-hall style meetings across the state to hear from residents about the redistricting process during the summer of 2011.