Republican

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — A group of mostly Democratic congress members, including the House majority leader, on Thursday proposed a binding plebiscite to decide whether Puerto Rico should become a state or gain some sort of independence. The draft proposal unveiled at an online news conference would commit Congress to accepting Puerto Rico into the United States if voters on the island approve it. But even if the plan were to pass the Democratic-led House, the proposal appears to have little chance in the Senate, where Republicans have long opposed statehood. Voters also could choose outright independence or independence with free association, whose terms would be defined following negotiations over foreign affairs, U.S. citizenship and use of the U.S. dollar, said Rep. Darren Soto of Florida. If no majority emerges, a second round of voting would be held between the top two alternatives. The measure, not yet introduced, follows months of negotiations between federal … [Read more...] about US lawmakers urge binding vote on Puerto Rico status

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — A new congressional map drawn by Republican Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis' staff that could diminish the state's Black representation in Washington was reinstated by an appeals court Friday, a week after a lower court judge said the map was unconstitutional. The 1st District Court of appeals ruled Judge Layne Smith erred when he ordered a replacement map be used for the 2022 election. The latest order means the governor's map is reinstated pending the outcome of a lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of the map. While the appeals court didn't address the constitutionality of the map, it did cite “the need for certainty and continuity as election season approaches.” The ruling comes as the state gets closer to the June 13 to 17 qualifying period for federal office. The DeSantis map would likely boost the number of Florida seats held by Republicans, while also making it difficult for Democratic U.S. Rep. Al Lawson to maintain his seat in a north Florida … [Read more...] about Florida appeals court reinstates DeSantis congressional map

TEXAS CITY — Miles inland from Galveston’s beaches and colorful vacation homes, a group of Black men dribble and jump on a covered basketball court, aiming for a chain-link net. Carver Park in Texas City, created during segregation, is considered the first African American county park in the state. It sits on land donated by descendants of freedmen who survived slavery and pioneered one of Texas’ oldest Black settlements, the footprint of which sits just a few blocks away. Until last year, the park sat at the heart of Galveston County’s Precinct 3 — the most diverse of the four precincts that choose the commissioners court, which governs the county along with the county judge. Precinct 3 was the lone seat in which Black and Hispanic voters, who make up about 38% of the county’s population, made up the majority of the electorate. The precinct sliced the middle of coastal Galveston County , stretching from the small city of Dickinson on the county’s northern end through … [Read more...] about A GOP power grab shatters 30 years of political progress for Black voters in Galveston County