Last week, I finished up the first half of a series I am doing on Florida political history. That series, which you can view here, covers the period of Florida politics from Reconstruction Era and into the rise of Jim Crow. My goal with these articles is to track the rise and fall of Black political power in Florida and the fight to maintain democracy amid Klan violence and state-backed voter suppression. My latest issue covered the 1876 Elections, which saw white Democrats win control of the state and will mark the beginning of a decade-plus drive to formalize Jim Crow rule.
The story of 1876 - 1900 will be the topic of future articles. However, this article I want to actually look backward to the start of reconstruction in 1867. One theme in my series of articles was how Black citizens, despite making up half of Florida’s voter population, were constantly having to fight for their political seat at the table even from their white Republican “allies.” Florida was beset by white carpetbaggers that wanted to use Black voters to hold power, but also wanted to prevent a full manifestation of Black political power. This left Black voters being forced to compromise and work with these more nefarious white Republicans in order to prevent the rise of the old confederate Democrats.
This internal Republican clash began way back at the start of reconstruction. As Florida worked toward drafting a new Constitution in the post-war era, a fight over how to apportion the state legislature would take center stage. The final result of this fight would be unquestionably Florida’s FIRST racial gerrymander. A plan designed to short-circuit Black power and prevent a Black-majority legislature kicked off reconstruction in Florida - a bad sign for what was to come.
That fight and final plan is what I want to discuss today.
Florida’s Racial Geography
Before we get into the fight over legislative districts, its important to get a feel for the unique racial geography of Florida at this time. Like many of the slave states, Florida came out of the Civil War with a large free Black population that was heavily concentrated where plantations had been located.
A census taken in 1867 indicated that Florida was nearly split between white and Black citizens. Using the 1870 census, which has more complete records, you can see that Florida’s Black population was heavily clustered in the northern counties of the state.
At this time, Florida was the least populated of the former Confederate states. Many of its counties had very few individuals, many of them spread out across dotted settlements. It was only the former plantation counties, as well as Duval (Jacksonville) and Escambia (Pensacola), that you had large concentrations of people. The map below highlights this population density better.
The population clustering was so significate that Florida’s 8 majority-Black counties had a larger population than the other 30 counties combined. These counties, seen in red below, also held 74% of the Black population - a reflection of how plantation placement was a major indicator where the state’s Black population resided. Few had moved away from the communities they were once in bondage.
The concentration of Black voters would make gerrymandering against Black representation an easier feat than it was in other states. How those eight counties were afforded legislative seats became a massive fight at the state’s 1868 Constitutional Convention.
The Battle for the Republican Party
The political scene leading into Florida’s 1868 Constitutional Convention is something I covered in extreme detail in Part 0 and Part 1 of my Reconstruction series. I will summarize and give the important points in this article, but if you want to learn more details, I recommend those pieces.
Florida’s reconstruction history began in 1867 when Congress passed its own set of Reconstruction Acts and took over the process from President Andrew Johnson. These acts suspended civilian government in the former confederate states and placed them under military rule. A return to civilian government required passage of the 14th Amendment and holding elections where Black men had the right to vote. The laws also designated the Freedman’s Bureau, an agency under the military that was established to aid the newly freed slaves, to work toward mass voter registration of Black citizens.
Florida underwent a massive voter registration drive through the summer of 1867. Freedman’s bureau agents worked county by county to oversee and at times directly run the process. Meanwhile, many native whites either boycotted the process or were denied the ability to register due to past confederate support. When the voter roles were completed, the state had a 58% Black voter roll.
Once the registration process was complete, Florida was set to hold a November election. That election would include a referendum on whether to hold a constitutional convention and elections for delegates to said convention. For the referendum to succeed, a majority of REGISTERED voters were needed to vote YES.
As this registration drive had begun, Florida’s Republican Party began to formalize and quickly fracture.
Early Republican Divisions
The Freedman Bureau became an increasingly political institution as reconstruction went on; namely thanks to the push for voter registration. Many of the bureau leaders, largely white military men, would become major Republican politicians in Florida and were some of the first “carpetbaggers”. Not all carpetbaggers were white, with many being northern Black citizens who came to Florida to help organize the freedmen. The carpetbaggers, as well as some native Republicans, were largely divided into two ideological camps: the moderates and the radicals.
The radicals were more true-believers in Black equality, not just in voting but in economic concerns. This philosophy was best seen in the “40 acres and mule” principle; giving freed Blacks the chance to maintain economic independence and have the vote. Nationally, figures like Thaddeus Stevens and Charles Sumner carried this mantra.
The moderates were those that sought to fill out their mission to register voters and establish a civilian government that had protections for the newly freed slaves. However, these individuals also did not want to overtly antagonize the native white population, instead aiming to placate them. Some where incredibly racist, only begrudgingly supporting Black voting rights to ensure they stayed in power. Others were more egalitarian and support Black rights, but also foolishly believed the native white population would eventually be swayed to accept the new status quo.
As Florida’s Republican Party began to take form in 1867, the battle for control between the more moderate and radical sides played out. Sides were fluid at this time, as men with ambition shifted allegiances as needed.
The moderates had the upper-hand however thanks to their Government positions. This not only included the military leaders, but civil servants who worked for the Treasury department and other agencies. Several of the most powerful early Republicans were on the much more conservative end of the moderate factions. Harrison Reed, William Gleason, and Marcellus Stearns, all of whom would play major roles in the political events to come, were deeply racist and sought to limit Black political power - only using it as a tool for their own advancement.
While these conservatives worked to keep Black political power contained, they were challenged by the emerging radical sect of the party.
Early radical leaders were Liberty Billings and Daniel Richards, both white men from the north, as well as William Saunders, a Black northerner. These leaders had strong support among the freedman population and were dedicated to pushing for political power for Black voters. Early Black radical leaders were Jonathan Gibbs, who’d been born free in Pennsylvania, Josiah Walls, born into slavery in Virginia and Charles Pearce, born into slavery in Maryland.
There were many emerging Republican leaders at this time that would not fall easily into either radical or moderate camp. However, the battles lines were being drawn as Florida headed toward upcoming elections. The conservative wing of the moderates were especially eager to keep Black Floridians as “clients” and not political equals.
The Republican divisions continued heading into the November convention referendum.
The Convention Referendum and Delegate Races
Voters going to the polls in November of 1867 saw two issues on their ballot…
Whether to hold a Constitutional Convention
Elections for delegates to said convention
Per the reconstruction acts, the YES vote for a convention needed to be 50% of all registered voters, not just ballots cast. Native whites, opposed to Black suffrage and Congressional oversight, boycotted the vote, seeing it as the best way to stop the success of the convention. As a result, the vote was almost entirely made up of the newly-registered Black voters. Of the 16,000 Black voters registered, around 13,000 cast ballots - ALL YES on a convention. These voters made up almost the entire YES vote, which secured just over 51% of the registered vote roll, allowing the referendum to narrowly pass.
A vast majority of white voters boycotted the vote, with only 1,300 or so backing the measure. If it was not for the strong voter turnout among the registered Black voters, the convention question would have failed.
The same day as the convention referendum, delegate elections were held. The state was divided into 19 electoral districts, each electing between 1 and 6 delegates. Thanks to the boycott by native whites, the delegate elections were dominated by Republicans. Exact election figures are hard to come by, but many if not most districts did not have a real contest.
The state Republican Party, which was lead by more moderate members, worked to select slates of delegates that kept as many factions happy, but did tilt more in the moderate direction. The party leaders did select more white than Black delegate candidates despite the fact Black voters would make up the overwhelmingly majority of the votes for the convention question itself. As a result, the final list of elected delegates stood at 28 white and 18 Black.
There were two districts that did have major delegate contests. Both were led by the radical insurgents challenging the moderate establishment that had already been chosen by the state executive committee.
In Gadsden County, a radical slate led by Richards and Saunders swept the county. Marcellus Stearns, who was running for his own spot as a delegate after serving as bureau agent for the county, was humiliated in defeat.
The loss would further embitter Stearns toward Black political leaders. He traded barbs with Richards back and forth in the press, with radicals pushing for the freedman’s bureau to relieve Stearns of his command with the agency.
Meanwhile, the 14th District, made up of Nassau, St Johns, and Duval, likewise saw the radicals sweep into office. This delegation was led by Liberty Billings and included Jonathan Gibbs; who would go on to become one of Florida’s most prominent Black leaders during Reconstruction.
With these elections wins, the radicals were closer to even with the moderates heading into the 1868 Convention, scheduled to convene in January in Tallahassee. Moderates still likely had a narrow advantage, but as mentioned sides were fluid. The party would have to try and come together to draft a constitution.
Or one side could betray the other…..
The Convention Clash and New Constitution
Delegates made there way into Tallahassee for the January convention. The delegate list was a mix of assorted members from within and outside of the state. Native freedmen, Black and white Carpetbaggers, and handfuls of southern white unionists made up the roster. The black delegates made up the bulk of the radical wing of the convention.
Radicals Lead at First
In the early days of the convention, the radicals had a majority of those present; though several more conservative members had yet to arrive. The radical faction was able to secure a quorum and then elected Daniel Richards as convention chair. The radical majority worked quickly to attempt and draft a constitution. However, clashes with the growing moderate/conservative wing slowed progress down. Moderates argued that Billings, Richards, and Saunders were not eligible for their seats, as they’d not been residents of their respective county for long enough time. Efforts to remove them, however, initially failed in a 21-20 vote held on February 1st.
When it became clear the radicals had control of the convention for the moment, the moderate group walked out and made their way to neighboring Monticello to work on their own separate constitution. Left in Tallahassee by themselves, the radical faction passed their constitutional draft. They then sent the news to General George Meade, who was tasked with overseeing the process and reporting the events of the convention to congress.
Moderates Take Control
However, in the dead of night on February 10th, the moderates returned and took control of the convention hall. As this happened, Billings and Richards were barred from entry to the hall. The moderate slate, claiming a narrow quorum, then elevated their own man, Horatio Jenkins, as chairman.
As the whole process devolved into claims of rival conventions, General Meade worked out a deal where both Richards and Jenkins relinquished their claim to be chair and a new unified vote was taken. Here the moderate faction had managed to consolidate more support from the white delegates, and Jenkins was elected chair despite opposition from a majority of Black delegates.
The delaying tactic had given the moderates enough time to consolidate white delegates by spreading fear of a Republican Party dominated by Black politicians and their white radical allies. Radical successes in the delegate challenges had demonstrated the power of the radical movement and made it something the moderate faction sought to curb. Among the moderate faction, at least two sub-groups existed.
The conservatives who saw Black citizens as inferior to whites and should support white Republicans, not lead them. This included figures like Stearns and Reed.
The more moderate-liberal faction was not opposition to Black political growth, but worried going “too fast” would explode tensions with native whites who had been so far boycotting the process. This camp included figures like Ossian Hart, who would become Governor in 1872 but by that point had become a much stronger ally of Black voters.
This alliance succeeded in passing their own state constitution on February 25th. A majority of the Black delegation voted against the moderate document.
Two Constitutions
There were now two constitutions floating around Florida; the document the radicals had passed February 1st, and the moderate draft passed February 25th. These documents both included several progressive elements; including the guaranteed the right to vote, established equality of the races, and mandated the funding of public education. However, there were two key differences that would affect Black political power.
The first difference was the method of selecting local officials. The radical constitution allowed the voters to elect their local county officials; offices like county commission, sheriff, tax collector, clerk of court, and so on. The moderate constitution made most of these offices appointed by the governor. This appointment provision was designed to curtail the growth of political leaders in the majority-Black counties. Whoever became Governor would hold sway over who led every county in the state; making the office very powerful.
The second difference, and by far the biggest, was the differences in apportionment. The radical plan was designed to be closer to equal in population when it came to both its State Senate and State House districts. This population equality would improve the chances of Black voters electing a majority of the legislature. The moderate constitution, meanwhile, was openly designed to keep the legislature from ever electing a majority-Black body. The plan had no population equality requirements and guaranteed every county at least 1 member and no county more than 4. This plan weighed heavily in favor of the rural white counties with small populations.
Moderates Win
With two constitutions sent to General Meade, Congress was forced to decide which plan to go with. Meade, a more conservative military man himself, sent both documents to Congress, but argued for the moderate document. The Congressional Redistricting committee eventually agreed, declaring that the moderate constitution was to be placed before the voters in a May election for ratification. At the same time, the state elections would be held. The Republican nominee for Governor was Harrison Reed and the Lt Governor nominee was William Gleason, both men who were hostile to Black political power and only wanted them for their votes.
Around this time, Reed wrote a letter to Democrat David Yulee, a former rabid pro-slavery US Senator and Confederate politician. In the letter, Reed stated
“Under our Constitution the Judiciary & State officers will be appointed & the apportionment will prevent a negro legislature.”
The moderate faction, led by some of its more conservative members, had triumphed over the radical block. Openly hostile to Black political equality, figures like Reed believed they could work with native whites and sway them over to a business-friendly Republican Party. Black voters would have rights, but they would be secondary to the concerns of white men.
The moderate factions would fracture shortly after the 1868 elections, which saw Harrison Reed elected Governor. The more liberal side of the faction, represented by people like William Purman and Ossian Hart, would break with the more conservative Reed. Marcellus Stearns, who would become Speaker of the House, would remain a firm racist but break with Reed over other issues. All this can be read in my regular series.
So how much did the new constitution limit Black political power in the legislature? Below I will examine the hard numbers on how the new legislative maps performed. I will then compare it the radical plan that was rejected. The differences are stark.
How to Gerrymander Florida
There are two key variables for judging the enacted and alternative plans from this time. The first, and most important, is how the plans aimed to give representation for the newly freed Black population. The other is how equal the populations for each district were. At this time, no real mandates on population equality between legislative districts existed. Maps often had districts over-populated or under-populated; a concept known as malapportionment.
The moderate plan found in the constitution weaponized malapportionment to keep Black representation lowl
The Plan under the 1868 Constitution
The State House plan gave each county one member; with an additional member allotted for every 1,000 registered voters. No county, however, could hold more than 4 members. Thanks to the apportionment method of the plan; only 20 of 53 districts were majority-Black.
The plan passed was designed to undercut Black political strength. Seven of the eight majority-Black counties were “overpopulated” and warranted extra representatives. Leon County held the most house seats, hitting the maximum of 4. However, Alachua County was more populated than Leon, but retained only 2 thanks to a lower voter registration rate, making it the most over-populated districts; with 2 members for its 17,300 residents (or 8,600 per seat). Dade County, with just its 85 residents (and under 20 voters) was the most under-populated. With this system, the final plan skewed heavily in favor of white Floridians.
In the state senate, the story was similar. The constitution divided the state into 24 single-member districts. With no concern for population equality, the map had twice as many majority-white districts as it did majority-Black. Several state senate districts were horrendously under-populated.
The apportionment of this map was especially over the top. District 21, making up Dade and Brevard County, was the worst offender, sitting at just 1,300 people and only around 150 registered voters. The heavily Black areas, meanwhile, were entirely over-populated; with the Alachua/Levy based seat sitting at 19,300 residents.
Both plans were drafted with one concern in mind, as Harrison Reed openly admitted, and that was to prevent a black-majority legislature. These plans succeeded, as never in the next decade would Black lawmakers make up a majority of either legislative chamber.
The May 1868 State elections saw Republicans win a solid majority in both legislative chambers; especially as many native whites still boycotted politics. The first elections saw 17 Black men elected to the state house and 5 to the state senate; the first Black lawmakers in Florida history.
A deep dive into the trajectory of Florida legislative control during this period could be a topic for a future article. However, through the next 8 years, little would change in terms of Black representation. The highest number of Black state house members would his 19; while it would hit 7 in the state senate.
The maps served their purpose and kept Black power limited in the legislature. You can read my longer series for much more on the constant struggle of Black political leaders to assert their influence in state politics; all working against a rigged system.
The Radical Alternative
While the radical plan did not become law, we do have the records of what they proposed.
The State House plan did not give each county its own representative; instead combining counties as needed. In addition, counties could have far more than 4 members, with Leon topping out at 7. The plan had 55 seats, with 35 of them majority-Black; a near-inverse of the moderate plan.
The radical plan aimed to maximize Black influence in the district; possibly intentionally drawn as a reverse racial gerrymander. There was less malapportionment than with the moderates plan; though [populations were still far from equal. Also far more white districts were over-populated (in other words short on representatives) - an inverse from the moderate plan.
The State Senate plan worked differently than what the moderates came up with. Not all districts were single-member and instead several districts would have between 1 and 4 members. The plan layout can be seen below.
The result was a plan with FAR less population deviation than the moderate senate plan. Thanks to an underpopulated panhandle, the plan was likewise skewed toward Black voters.
Its harder to gage ether the map drafters intended to over-represent the Black population. The 1867 census data available does not indicate drastic differences from the 1870 census. They may well have factored in that likely future intimidation of voters, which was already showing up with the early Klan, would limit Black strength in some areas. The goal may well have been to create a “buffer” to ensure that even if some areas became embroiled in election violence, Black representation would be too large to be erased.
Its also possible this was just pure politics - that the radicals had strong support among Black voters - and aimed to maximize their influence to ensure the legislature elected would not just he a Republican majority, but a radical majority.
If you ask me to chose between the two, assuming both are partisan/racial gerrymanders. I’ll take the one that maximized Black political power. Native whites were hardly a sympathetic group - and considering the Klan violence soon to explode in Florida (see issue 2) - that lack of sympathy is well founded. Considering the crimes of slavery, some extra representation was fair.
My Own Alternative Plan
Since we are looking at two plans designed with their own racial and partisan motivations, I figured it was only fitting to look for a possibly middle ground map between the two. Could a plan be designed that protected Black political influence while also better balancing populations? I think so.
I created this alternative state house plan using the census data from the time. Removing a cap-per-county and combining smaller counties where needed, this proposal has much less population deviation and gives Black voters a narrow lead in the number of districts.
This plan allows for a possible Black-majority legislature or for sure a legislature where Black voters would always be a major force.
Similar plans with the state senate could be achieved; creating plans that had more minimal population deviation and racial balance.
Moral of the story, there was no shortage of ways to divvy up Florida for its legislative districts. However, it is clear, not only by how it performed but what politicians said at the time, that the constitutional plan of 1868 was a racial gerrymander designed to limit the influence of Black Floridians.
Sadly, sometimes things never change in Florida.
Final Thoughts
As of this writing, with it being the evening of April 22nd, Florida is about to enter a new period of redistricting. Next week, the legislature is coming into special session for mid-decade redistricting. Governor DeSantis is making this drive and for much of his tenure has directed his ire at minority districts. His 2022 Congressional plan was already an obscene gerrymander that destroyed Black representation in North Florida.
What the new plans will look like is up in the air. DeSantis was hoping the Supreme Court would have weakened the Voting Rights Act by this point - a move that would possibly allow him to target other minority seats. However, no such ruling has come yet, so how far DeSantis goes remains to be seen. What is clear, however, is he strongly desires to further weaken minority voters in Florida. What the legislature will go with remains up in the air. I wrote about this topic back in September. Until then, we await some maps.
Whatever DeSantis tries to pull off, he will be taking his cues from the past. I wonder if their is a portraited of Governor Harrison Reed somewhere in his office.