TALLAHASSEE – Rep. Angie Nixon was reprimanded by the House Rules and Ethics Committee on Thursday for her loud protest on the House floor last month that disrupted a vote on new congressional district maps.
Nixon, a Jacksonville Democrat, was not given an opportunity to speak before the panel before it approved the formal reprimand on a voice vote, but she did issue a statement to the committee.
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“While every member has the right to vigorous debate and dissent, that right does not extend to the active disruption of the legislative process,” the reprimand states. “Intense personal feelings on an issue are never a justification for conduct on the floor that violates House rules. Legislative decorum must be maintained, as it is the foundation upon which civil governance rests.”
The reprimand from the committee, which stops short of a censure from the entire House, is a rare disciplinary action for a member.
Nixon defended her actions, which included using a pink megaphone – matching her bright pink outfit - to shout about the “illegal” and “unconstitutional” new congressional maps ahead of the April 29 vote.
Democrats decried the move to new districts, which could see their party lose as many as four seats in the U.S. House after the midterm elections. They claim it is a violation of Florida’s constitution, which prohibits partisan gerrymandering.
“This is a slap in the face of voters. It’s a slap in the face of all Floridians. This is slap in the face of the blood of my ancestors that’s running through my veins and it is boiling right now,” Nixon told reporters after the vote. “If I had to do it over again I would and I probably would have a bigger pink megaphone.”
At least two Democrats, Reps. Allison Tant of Tallahassee and Marie Woodson of Hollywood, inadvertently voted for the new maps. Woodson cited Nixon’s protest as the reason.
“I inadvertently voted yes because of the commotion with the bullhorn on the floor; I thought it was a quorum call. I debated against the bill and would not have voted yes,” Woodson wrote on a memo explaining her vote.
The use of the megaphone was cited in the reprimand issued by the committee, because props aren’t allowed on the House floor. The reprimand also stated Nixon violated House rules for speaking on the floor and promoting “public confidence in the integrity and independence of the House and of the Legislature.”
House Democratic Leader Fentrice Driskell spoke out against the decision from Rep. Sam Garrison, R-Fleming Island, chairman of the committee, to not allow Nixon to speak.
“The right to be informed of the charges against you and confront the evidence against you is ancient. That kid of due process interest goes back to Magna Carta,” Driskell said.
But Garrison defended his handling of the matter, noting it stopped short of a full censure.
“A reprimand is a serious action but it is also a measured one. It recognizes the need for accountability but it balances it with a measure of grace that I believe each of us would hope for if the roles were reversed,” Garrison said before the reprimand was read and approved.
The incident wasn’t the first time Nixon caused a commotion on the House floor over redistricting. She led a protest in 2022 when the old districts were approved. The House briefly recessed but returned one hour later to approve the map.
No formal discipline was handed out at the time, but Nixon said the next House Speaker, Paul Renner, put her office in the “basement with rats,” following the 2022 midterm elections.