After a mid-cycle redistricting push to solidify Republican rule in Congress, Black voters in Tampa Bay find themselves splintered into five sprawling districts.
East Tampa will share a representative with the upper reaches of Citrus County, more than 90 miles northwest. Much of St. Petersburg’s Black community will be in the same district as Arcadia and Fort Meade, 75 miles east.
The change, local Black leaders say, dilutes Black voting power and threatens the region’s lone blue seat.
