Florida judge denies jury trial in challenge to 2026 congressional map

Leon County Judge Joshua Hawkes dismissed a motion by voting-rights groups to empanel a jury in the lawsuit challenging Florida’s 2026 congressional redistricting plan. Citing that the complaint seeks only declaratory and injunctive relief, Hawkes held the action is equitable and therefore not triable by jury. The plaintiffs—among them the Florida League of Women Voters and the Equal Ground Education Fund—assert the map, signed by Governor Ron DeSantis, constitutes a partisan gerrymander violating the state’s Fair Districts Amendments.

State attorneys for the governor, attorney general and secretary of state countered that no prior redistricting case has required a jury, and that any nominal damages claim does not change the equitable nature of the suit. Earlier this year the court also refused a preliminary injunction that would have reinstated the previous congressional map, which some argued conflicted with a Supreme Court precedent. Jessica Lowe-Minor, president of the League, said the organization will keep pursuing the challenge despite the setback. The ruling leaves the broader constitutional question of the Fair Districts Amendments unresolved.