Florida Gov Ron DeSantis mocks Rep Hakeem Jeffries’ ‘F around and find out’ jab over redistricting

TALLAHASSEE, FLORIDA: Florida Gov Ron DeSantis is not backing down after House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries dared Republicans to “Faround and find out” over looming redistricting plans in the Sunshine State.

DeSantis mocked Jeffries’ rhetoric, saying, “I heard this guy, Jeffries, popping off in Washington about Florida. He wants to be Speaker of the House, and he’s kind of more liberal than (Nancy) Pelosi and all this other stuff from New York City.”

“Just, ‘Oh, Florida can’t do this, or we’re going to go after Florida.’ Please, be my guest. I will pay for you to come down to Florida and campaign. I’ll put you up in the Florida Governor’s mansion. We’ll take you fishing, we’ll do all this stuff,” he added. “There’s nothing that could be better for Republicans in Florida than to see Jeffries everywhere around this state.”

Jeffries’ warning came earlier in the week.

“Our message to Florida Republicans is, 'F around and find out.' If they go down the road of a DeSantis dummymander, the Florida Republicans are going to find themselves in the same situation as Texas Republicans… The electoral tide is turning in Florida,” he said.

Gerrymandering race heats up

The clash is just one front in a no-holds-barred redistricting battle playing out nationwide as both parties look to squeeze every possible advantage out of congressional maps before the midterms.

After President Donald Trump urged GOP lawmakers to pad their razor-thin 217-213 House majority by targeting five Democratic seats in Texas, similar efforts followed across multiple states, including North Carolina, Alabama, Louisiana, New York, and Georgia.

Democrats, meanwhile, are playing the same game.

In Virginia, voters recently signed off on a redistricting push led by Democratic Gov Abigail Spanberger, aimed at flipping the state’s current 6-5 Democratic edge into a commanding 10-1 advantage by stretching Republican-leaning districts into blue territory. 

Florida now appears poised to join the scramble.

Florida in the crosshairs

With Republicans controlling the governor’s office and legislature (and eight Democratic-held districts potentially up for grabs), DeSantis has already called a special session to examine new maps.

“Today, I announced that I will be convening a special session of the Legislature focused on redistricting to ensure that Florida’s congressional maps accurately reflect the population of our state,” DeSantis said in a January announcement.

Still, there are guardrails. Florida’s constitution explicitly bans drawing districts “with the intent to favor or disfavor a political party or an incumbent,” setting up a likely legal fight no matter how the maps shake out.

Democrats argue Republicans may be overplaying their hand by stretching support too thin and risking once-safe districts.

Jeffries suggested that's already happening elsewhere.

“If they go down the road of a DeSantis ‘dummymander,’ the Florida Republicans are going to find themselves in the same situation as Texas Republicans, who are on the run right now,” he said. “And under no circumstances are Texas Republicans picking up five seats. They'll be fortunate if they get two or three, while in California, we are going to get all five. The Republicans are dumbly meandering their way into the minority before a single vote is cast."

That said, Florida lawmakers haven’t revealed what a revamped map might look like. As of now, Republicans hold 20 of the state’s 28 seats.