(Luis Cornelio, Headline USA) Democrat Debbie Wasserman-Schultz has long advocated for black representation in government and politics. However, when her district was redrawn, she was quick to jump into another race where she is potentially threatening the same black representation she claimed to advocate.
Wasserman-Schultz, who is Jewish, was seeking a 12th term to represent Florida’s 25th Congressional District. But in response to Gov. Ron DeSantis’ redistricting plan that made her district lean Republican, she jumped into the race to represent Florida’s 20th Congressional District.
The new district she is aiming to represent covers Broward County, which is approximately 40% black and has long sent black lawmakers to Congress, according to multiple news reports.
Wasserman-Schultz is now facing questions about her decision to join that race, as four other prominent black Democrats were already in the race. They include activist Elijah Manley, former Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick, former Broward County Mayor Dale Holness and musician Luther Campbell.
"Stabbed us in the back, trying to take away Black representation": Black congressional candidates, like progressive Elijah Manley, slammed Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz for vacating her Republican-leaning district to run in an area that has helped send Black Democrats to… pic.twitter.com/ij8nfzYYCe
— WFLA NEWS (@WFLA) August 17, 2026
Notably, a Headline USA review of Wasserman-Schultz’s past comments on her X page found a recurring theme in which the Democrat repeatedly accused Republicans of diminishing black and minority representation.
Most recently, on April 21, 2022, the Democrat darling claimed Florida Republicans kept “eroding minority progress” by cutting Florida’s black congressional representation “in half.”
She said she was “very proud” of Democrats “who refuse to be silent while this injustice unfolds.”
On Jan. 26, 2021, Wasserman-Schultz hailed the Biden administration’s plan to put Harriet Tubman on the $20 bill, claiming: “Representation matters, especially on the most used dollar bill in America.”
On Oct. 13, 2020, she accused the Trump administration of redrawing congressional maps and “rob millions of mostly nonwhite people of representation.”
In June 2020, Wasserman-Schultz praised Ella Jones for becoming the first black mayor of Ferguson, Mo., saying that “now more than ever, representation matters.”
The Democratic primary is set for Aug. 18. The winner is heavily favored to win the general election in November.
