Miami appeals ruling that found city had racially gerrymandered voting districts

Miami authorities are appealing a judge's ruling that ordered the redrawing of the city's voting districts, the Miami Herald reported on Monday.

The decision, which is set to extend a lengthy and costly legal battle, comes after the judge concluded the city's five district had been racially gerrymandered and ordered they be redrawn.

The city seemed to be on track to accept the ruling, which included voting on a new map with minor changes and paying for the legal fees of the plaintiff, the city's ACLU chapter.

However, Commissioners Joe Carollo and Manolo Reyes said they were concerned over the new map and stressed the need to ensure diversity on the commission.

The commission voted 4-0 to defer the settlement approval until its next meeting, with Carollo saying the city has an "excellent chance of overturning this."

Florida ACLU Interim Executive Director Howard Simon told the Miami Herald that the settlement is still on the table. "The people of Miami deserve fair redistricting maps that are not racially discriminatory. That is what this case has been about from day one. ... We are hopeful commissioners will approve the agreement next Thursday and end this lengthy court battle," Simon said in a statement.

The proposed map would be effective for the November 2025 municipal elections and any Special Election before. It aims to unify neighborhoods across the city, including Coconut Grove, Overtown, Allapattah and Edgewater, which were previously divided along racial lines in commission-drawn maps struck down by U.S. District Judge K. Michael Moore, earlier this month.

Under the proposed settlement, the incumbent commissioners would continue to serve their current terms despite the map changes. The new map would also make only minor changes to the demographics of voting-age citizens in each district, a Herald data analysis shows.

A Hispanic supermajority would remain in Districts 1,3 and 4. District 5 would remain majority Black, with the percentage of Black voting-age citizens decreasing slightly, from 57.4% to 56.5%, according to the Herald.