ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. – Orange County commissioners voted Tuesday to adopt a final map for the county, nearly a year after the passage of a measure to expand the number of commission districts.
In November 2024, voters in Orange County approved the expansion of districts from six to eight.
That vote sparked the creation of the 2025 Mid-Decennial Redistricting Advisory Committee, which was tasked with scrutinizing more than two dozen potential maps submitted to the committee.
Seven months after the formation of the committee, members narrowed down the choices to two maps: Map 1A and Map 7B.
And on Tuesday, well after the sun went down, Orange County commissioners voted 5-2 to approve map 7B.
“I understand why we’re supporting 1A,” District 5 Commissioner Kelly Martinez Semrad said before the vote. “But the job of this local government here is to represent unincorporated Orange County, and I feel confident that 7B does a great job of that.”
Semrad’s vote was a highly anticipated one, as her district includes Winter Park. Her vote for 7B proved to be at odds with the desires of Winter Park elected officials.
At Tuesday’s meeting, Winter Park’s mayor and city commissioners spoke during a public comment period to advocate for the passage of Map 1A.
“In the best interests of my city and our neighboring municipalities I ask that we adopt Map 1A, which more closely conforms to the traditional redistricting principles,” said Winter Park Vice Mayor Marty Sullivan.
The city’s commission passed a resolution last month to formally support Map 1A.
The resolution, in part, states that Map 1A would group Winter Park with “other urban communities with similar issues and priorities such as Maitland, Eatonville, College Park and Pine Hills.”
Winter Park leaders and residents also lamented the prospect of being grouped with the more rural area of east Orange County, as outlined in Map 7B.
Supporters of Map 7B cautioned against places like Winter Park being in the same district as unincorporated areas like Pine Hills, arguing that Winter Park’s inclusion would dilute the voices and votes of majority-minority areas.
“With this map, Winter Park aims to push their special interest and agendas,” one supporter of Map 7B said at Tuesday’s meeting. “The aim is to overshadow the interests of the Black and brown working class that live in Pine Hills, Orlo Vista, or Eatonville.”
The two dissenting votes on Map 7B were Commissioner Christine Moore and Commissioner Mayra Uribe.