Eric Holder Applauds the Florida Supreme Court’s Decision to Deny Governor DeSantis’ Advisory Opinion

For Immediate Release:
February 10, 2022 

Contact:
Jena Doyle 
doyle@redistrictingaction.org

Eric Holder Applauds the Florida Supreme Court’s Decision to Deny Governor DeSantis’ Advisory Opinion

Florida – Today, Eric H. Holder, Jr., the 82nd Attorney General of the United States released the following statement in response to the Florida Supreme Court’s ruling to deny Governor Ron DeSantis’ request for an advisory opinion on his proposed map eliminating half the state’s Black opportunity congressional districts. 

 “The ruling today from the State Supreme Court is a victory for Florida voters. By denying Governor DeSantis’ request for an advisory opinion, the Court has put a stop to his unprecedented interference in the redistricting process and his attempts to illegitimately force legislators to silence the voices of Florida’s communities of color. It is the responsibility of the Florida Legislature to pass redistricting maps that fairly represent the state, and do not violate previous rulings from the courts.” 

 Earlier in the week, All On The Line Florida submitted a brief to the Florida Supreme Court opposing the actions of Governor DeSantis. In the brief, All On The Line noted that the advisory opinion the governor had requested was not allowed under the Florida Constitution. The governor was attempting to hijack the legislative process by preemptively asking for an interpretation of the state’s non-retrogression standard. Moreover, the governor was asking the Court to issue an advisory opinion on an issue it already ruled on–after extensive litigation–during the previous redistricting cycle. By asking the Court to make this determination without detailed facts or even presenting his own proposed map or analysis to the Court, Governor DeSantis was pushing the Court to make a crucial decision for Black political representation based on conjecture.

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