Florida Dems Want Debbie Wasserman Schultz to Stay Out of the Race for Black-Led District

As Florida Democrats scramble to survive a brutal new congressional map, one of the state’s most recognizable political figures is causing fiery debates within the Democratic party over race, representation and political survival.

Democrat Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz is facing sharp backlash from Black leaders in the party after announcing she will run in Florida’s newly redrawn 20th Congressional District, a historically Black seat, the New York Times reported. The district became open after the resignation of former Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick and now sits at the center of a Democratic identity crisis.

We previously told you the Supreme Court’s decision to gut Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 opened the doors for redistricting efforts across the South. Florida adopted a new map, which passed in a special session on April 29, that gives Republicans an advantage ahead of the November midterms, NBC News reported.

Experts predicted that the new map could force Democratic incumbents into a political musical chairs. Now, it seems these concerns are coming to fruition.

In Rep. Wasserman Schultz’s case, her longtime district 25 was redrawn into a more hostile and competitive zone. Nearby, however, the heavily Democratic District 20 offered a potential lifeline. Wasserman Schultz announced she’d run in District 20 instead, but for many Black leaders, her entry into the race represents something else entirely: a threat to one of the few remaining Florida districts designed to empower Black voters.

We have reported on how redistricting efforts in the South have often led to majority-Black districts being targeted. As a consequence, critics say there will likely be less Black representation in Congress by next year. That’s why so many leaders are fighting to keep District 20 Black.

“We said don’t run, and we said it loudly because people don’t listen to you unless you talk in those terms,” Corey Shearer, the head of Broward County’s Democratic Black Caucus, told CBS News. “We’re going to continue to talk to each other, and what we’re saying is we prefer for you not to run.”

Black leaders haven’t been shy about publicly urging white Democratic incumbents not to pursue the seat. Still, with Wasserman Schultz hopping into the race, critics say this is a matter of preserving Black voting power in Florida.

“This is not about Debbie,” State Sen. Shevrin Jones told CBS. “What this is about is making sure that the individuals who are being represented, they at least have the fighting chance to be represented by someone who has lived their lived experience.”

If Wasserman Schultz wins the seat, Florida would have only one Black representative in Congress. The seat was previously held by former Rep. Cherfilus-McCormick, a Black woman who is now facing criminal charges after she allegedly pocketed $5 million for her re-election campaign, we previously told you. She resigned following a House ethics hearing, WFSU reported. Still, Cherfilus-McCormick says she plans to run again for her seat.

“You should run where you feel like you’re most compatible,” Cherfilus-McCormick said of Wasserman Schultz coming for her seat. “Today I watched the video, and a lot of my constituents sent it, and the one question they asked is, ‘What is her why? Why this district? Why us?’”

Wasserman Schultz announced her bid for District 20 last week. “I’ve fought for the people of Broward County my whole adult life, and you’ve always been able to count on me to deliver results for our community,” she wrote in a news release.

The fight carries national implications. House Democrats continue to battle Republican redistricting efforts across the country. In South Florida, the battle has now become deeply personal– a collision between what’s best for the party and what’s best for racial representation.