The redistricting amendment was approved by the GOP-controlled Florida Legislature this past spring and if passed would allow legislators to take into account "the ability of racial and language minorities to participate in the political process of their choice." It would also allow legislators to take into account "communities of common interest."

But Judge James Shelfer agreed with opponents of the amendment -- which include the League of Women Voters and the Florida State Conference of the NAACP -- that it misleads voters. Shelfer said the wording of the amendment could allow the Legislature to ignore other requirements -- including one that districts be contiguous -- already in the state constitution. Shelfer said it would possible to have a district include both Destin and Daytona Beach because they are both beach communities.

Shelfer noted it took him three days to go through past cases in order to get a clear understanding of what the amendment could do. He said that a voter should not have to carry a copy of the constitution into the voting booth in order to figure out how to vote.

Shelfer made his ruling despite an argument from attorneys representing both the House and Senate that lawmakers had no intent to set aside other redistricting requirements already in the constitution. Legislative attorneys also argued that there was nothing misleading about what the amendment does.

Shelfer said he was ruling from the bench in order to start the process of getting the case eventually heard by the state Supreme Court. He said he hopes to issue a final written ruling in the next few days.

Florida lawmakers must redraw maps for legislative and Congressional districts every 10 years. Legislators drew up Amendment 7 in response to two amendments put on the ballot by FairDistrictsFlorida.org. Amendment 5 and Amendment 6 would require legislators to design districts that are compact and do not give an advantage to an incumbent or someone of a particular political party.

Legislators said their amendment was needed to clarify the two citizen amendments, saying that if voters passed them they would be impossible to carry out. They also said that the citizen amendments could lead to a reduction of districts that can be won by minority candidates.