TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — The Florida Legislature didn't violate the state constitution when it approved congressional maps pushed by Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis that helped the GOP replace a Black Democratic representative with a white conservative, an appeals court ruled Friday. The 1st District Court of Appeal reversed a lower court's ruling that the map that rewrote U.S. Rep. Alan Lawson's district was unconstitutional because it diminished Black voters' ability to elect a candidate of their choice. Voting rights groups had argued the new map was unconstitutional because it dismantled a district where Black citizens made up nearly half the registered voters. The appeals court agreed with DeSantis that a district can't be drawn to connect two Black communities that otherwise have no connection.

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Persons: Ron DeSantis, Alan Lawson's, DeSantis, “ Organizations: Republican Gov, GOP, Black Democratic, Rep, Black Locations: TALLAHASSEE, Fla, Florida, downtown Jacksonville, Gadsden County, Georgia, Washington, Alabama, Orlando