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Florida's 13th congressional district

Florida's 13th congressional district
Interactive map of district boundaries since January 3, 2023
Representative	Anna Paulina Luna R–St. Petersburg
Area	429[1] sq mi (1,110 km2)
Distribution	99.99% urban[2] 0.01% rural
Population (2022)	763,693[3]
Median household income	$65,785[3]
Ethnicity	74.0% White 11.1% Hispanic 6.6% Black 4.1% Two or more races 3.5% Asian 0.8% other
Cook PVI	R+6[4]

Florida's 13th congressional district is an electoral district for the U.S. CongressonFlorida's Gulf Coast, assigned to Pinellas County.^[5][6] The district includes Largo, Clearwater, and Palm Harbor. In the 2020 redistricting cycle, most of St. Petersburg facing Tampa Bay was redistricted into the 14th district, while the rest of Pinellas County formerly in the 12th district became included in the 13th district.

From 2003 to 2012, it encompassed all of Sarasota, DeSoto, and Hardee Counties; as well as most of Manatee County, except for a small northern coastal portion that was then located in the neighboring 11th congressional district. It also included a small section of Charlotte County. Most of that district is now the 16th congressional district, while the current 13th covers most of what had been the 10th district from 1993 to 2013.

The district is currently represented by Republican Anna Paulina Luna.

Characteristics[edit]

2015 court-ordered redistricting[edit]

In July 2015 the Florida Supreme Court overturned the boundaries of the state's congressional districts, ruling that "the maps were the product of an unconstitutional political gerrymandering". It expressed its distrust of lawmakers and "provided detailed instructions on how to repair the flawed map in time for the 2016 election."^[7]

In 2012, the Legislature drew these districts so that District 14 crossed Tampa Bay from Hillsborough County, splitting Pinellas County and the City of St. Petersburg to include a portion of the black population in southern Pinellas County in District 14. The Challengers contended that the Legislature's configuration of these districts—which 'added more Democratic voters to an already safely Democratic District 14, while ensuring that District 13 was more favorable to the Republican Party'—was directly connected to the trial court's finding that the enacted map was unconstitutionally drawn to favor the Republican Party.^[8]

With the future of the boundaries of the district undetermined, the Republican Party may abandon it. This was where (under slightly different boundaries) William C. Cramer was elected to Congress, and he helped build the Republican Party in Florida and the South. He held office from 1954 to 1970. Republican C.W. Bill Young essentially represented the district from 1971 to his death in 2013. But demographics have continued to change, and more recently it has been a swing district. Several Democrats may be interested in running for the seat.

2022 DeSantis redistricting[edit]

Despite the July 2015 Florida Supreme Court ruling overturning a blatantly redistricted congressional map, in which the 2012 legislature redrew Tampa's 14th District to include portions of the City of Saint Petersburg and black populations in southern Pinellas County, Governor DeSantis' administration redrew Pinellas County's 13th District to be exclusive of these known Democratic areas. Under the Fair Districts constitutional amendments that Florida voters approved in 2010, legislators are forbidden to draw districts that intentionally favor or disfavor incumbents or parties. In September of 2023 Circuit Judge J. Lee Marsh determined the redistricting plan pushed by Ron DeSantis violated the state constitution and is prohibited from being used for any future U.S. congressional elections.^[9]

List of members representing the district[edit]

Representative	Party	Years	Cong ress	Electoral history	Congressional map
District created January 3, 1973
William Lehman (North Miami Beach)	Democratic	January 3, 1973 – January 3, 1983	93rd 94th 95th 96th 97th	Elected in 1972. Re-elected in 1974. Re-elected in 1976. Re-elected in 1978. Re-elected in 1980. Redistricted to the 17th district.	1973–1983 [data missing]
Connie Mack III (Cape Coral)	Republican	January 3, 1983 – January 3, 1989	98th 99th 100th	Elected in 1982. Re-elected in 1984. Re-elected in 1986. Retired to run for U.S. Senator.	1983–1993 [data missing]
Porter Goss (Sanibel)	Republican	January 3, 1989 – January 3, 1993	101st 102nd	Elected in 1988. Re-elected in 1990. Redistricted to the 14th district.
Dan Miller (Bradenton)	Republican	January 3, 1993 – January 3, 2003	103rd 104th 105th 106th 107th	Elected in 1992. Re-elected in 1994. Re-elected in 1996. Re-elected in 1998. Re-elected in 2000. Retired.	1993–2003 [data missing]
Katherine Harris (Sarasota)	Republican	January 3, 2003 – January 3, 2007	108th 109th	Elected in 2002. Re-elected in 2004. Retired to run for U.S. Senator.	2003–2013
Vern Buchanan (Sarasota)	Republican	January 3, 2007 – January 3, 2013	110th 111th 112th	Elected in 2006. Re-elected in 2008. Re-elected in 2010. Redistricted to the 16th district.
Bill Young (Largo)	Republican	January 3, 2013 – October 18, 2013	113th	Redistricted from the 10th district and re-elected in 2012. Died.	2013–2017
Vacant		October 18, 2013 – March 13, 2014
David Jolly (Indian Shores)	Republican	March 13, 2014 – January 3, 2017	113th 114th	Elected to finish Young's term. Re-elected later in 2014. Lost re-election.
Charlie Crist (St. Petersburg)	Democratic	January 3, 2017 – August 31, 2022	115th 116th 117th	Elected in 2016. Re-elected in 2018. Re-elected in 2020. Retired and resigned to run for Governor of Florida.	2017–2023
Vacant		August 31, 2022 – January 3, 2023	117th
Anna Paulina Luna (St. Petersburg)	Republican	January 3, 2023 – present	118th	Elected in 2022.	2023–present

Voting[edit]

Election results[edit]

2002[edit]

2004[edit]

2006[edit]

Election officials certified Buchanan as the winner of the race over Jennings by 369 votes. Buchanan was declared the winner after a mandatory recount and analysis of alleged voting machine errors in the race. The primary controversy in this race was that over 18,000 ballots (or roughly one in six) cast in Sarasota County apparently did not register a vote for this race, far higher than in the two previous elections involving Jan Schneider, but lower than the undervote in 2000. Sarasota County voted for Jennings by a six-point margin. Jennings refused to concede the race and pursued administrative and legal challenges to the result, including an appeal for an investigation of the election with the House Administration Committee.^[11] Preliminary results from an investigation by Congress's Government Accountability Office concluded that there was no evidence that the voting machines caused the high undervote, but that inadequate testing made it impossible to prove their complete reliability.^[12] Sarasota County has since moved to optical scanned paper ballots as a result of a 2006 referendum vote.

According to a statistical study published in 2008,^[13] the missing votes were caused by the ballot screen layout. The authors' best estimate on what the result would have been, had this problem not occurred, gave victory to Jennings at a 99.9% confidence level, and a mean margin of victory for her of 639 votes.

2008[edit]

2010[edit]

2012[edit]

2014 (special)[edit]

The district's seat was vacated following the death of Bill Young.^[16] A special election was held on March 11, 2014 to replace him. The election was won by Republican David Jolly with 48.52% of the vote over one-time gubernatorial candidate Democrat Alex Sink's 46.64% and Libertarian candidate Lucas Overby's 4.84%.

2014[edit]

2016[edit]

2018[edit]

2020[edit]

2022[edit]

References[edit]

• Martis, Kenneth C. (1989). The Historical Atlas of Political Parties in the United States Congress. New York: Macmillan Publishing Company.
• Martis, Kenneth C. (1982). The Historical Atlas of United States Congressional Districts. New York: Macmillan Publishing Company.
• Congressional Biographical Directory of the United States 1774–present

External links[edit]

• Voting inquiry finds reasons to dig deeper Archived May 30, 2016, at the Wayback Machine (Sarasota Herald-Tribune, August 4, 2007)
• Congressional task force to begin investigating contested Florida 13 election. (The Bradenton Herald, March 31, 2007)
• Congressional Republicans act to block Congressional Task Force slated to begin investigation into Florida 13. (Sarasota Herald-Tribune, March 28, 2007)
• Memo on voting machines "misfiled" by Kathy Dent's office. (Sarasota Herald-Tribune, March 17, 2007)
• People for the American Way Statement on Newly Revealed ES&S Memo on Possible Machine Malfunction. (People for the American Way, March 15, 2007)
• August 2006 Memo from Elections Systems and Software warning Florida Supervisors of Elections of a response time issue on their iVotronics touchscreen voting systems.
• Sarasota: Could a Bug Have Lost Votes? (Professor Ed Felten, February 27, 2006)
• Software Review and Security Analysis of the ES&S iVotronic 8.0.1.2 Voting Machine Firmware, Final Report. (Florida Department of State, February 2007)
• Affidavit by Clare Ward-Jenkins, poll worker in Precinct 14, Sarasota County. Ms. Ward-Jenkins' affidavit details her encounters with a bug that repeatedly cleared votes cast for Democratic Congressional candidate, Christine Jennings., January 19, 2007
• Analysis: Undervoted ballots heavily favored Democrats. (Orlando Sentinel, November 22, 2006)
• Buchanan declared winner; rival Jennings sues Archived July 8, 2017, at the Wayback Machine (Sarasota Herald-Tribune, November 21, 2006)
• Christine Jennings' "Complaint to Contest Election" Archived June 16, 2007, at the Wayback Machine (Filed in Florida Court, November 20, 2006)
• Sarasota County Electronic Ballot Screenshots (Posted on The BradBlog, November 20, 2006)
• Christine Jennings' web site. Archived November 29, 2021, at the Wayback Machine
• Vern Buchanan's Congressional web site.

27°51′58″N 82°44′54″W / 27.86611°N 82.74833°W / 27.86611; -82.74833