Delray Beach Cancels St. Patrick’s Day Parade as DeSantis Calls Move ‘Malicious Compliance’

Delray Beach has cancelled its St. Patrick’s Day parade and its annual Pride event for 2027, saying Florida’s new law restricting local diversity, equity and inclusion work leaves the city legally barred from organising either celebration.

The decision has set off a public row with the governor who signed the law. Gov. Ron DeSantis said on Friday that the cancellations were “not mandated by Florida law”, calling the city’s move “malicious compliance” and “an attempt to make a political point”, according to NBC News.

A law that takes effect on 1 January

Florida Senate Bill 1134, known as the “Official Actions of Local Governments” law, was signed by DeSantis in April and takes effect on 1 January 2027. It bars counties and cities from funding, promoting or taking official action on activities the law defines as diversity, equity and inclusion, including programming “designed or implemented with reference to race, color, sex, ethnicity, gender identity, or sexual orientation”.

The bill was filed by two Jacksonville Republicans, Sen. Clay Yarborough and Rep. Dean Black. It also says officials who violate its provisions could face civil or legal consequences.

The law exempts holidays designated by federal or state law, along with patriotic and national observances. St. Patrick’s Day is not a federal holiday, and the city concluded it did not qualify for an exemption. The same reasoning applied to the Pride event, which is held in June.

NPR reported that the city lawyer told the mayor any government-sponsored celebration of culture, ethnicity or heritage that is not a national holiday could run afoul of the new law.

A parade with nearly 60 years of history

Delray Beach’s St. Patrick’s Day parade has run since 1968, making it one of South Florida’s longest-running celebrations of Irish heritage. The city and its fire department have organised the parade since 2019.

Parades remain a fixture of American civic life — New York’s Thanksgiving Day parade is marking its 100th year in 2026 — but Delray Beach’s decision shows how quickly a local tradition can become a political flashpoint.

City lawyers reviewed the new law and advised that government-sponsored celebrations of culture, ethnicity or heritage that are not tied to a national holiday could run afoul of it. Mayor Tom Carney, a Republican of Irish descent, said he made the difficult decision to cancel on that advice.

In the city’s statement, officials wrote: “Following a review of the legislation and its requirements, the City has determined that it is legally prohibited from organizing, funding, or promoting these events in 2027.”

The search for a private sponsor

Carney said the city was “working feverishly with multiple entities to ensure the 2027 St. Patrick’s Day parade goes on as scheduled”, and City Manager Terrence Moore said the parade could still take place if a private interest stepped in to sponsor it. The law does not stop private groups from holding the events, and the city can still issue permits and provide police.

As of Friday, no sponsor had committed to either event, according to reports. Commissioner Judy Mollica said the city had acted on its attorney’s advice, not out of malice.

A wider fight over local control

DeSantis’s response has turned a local scheduling decision into the latest flashpoint in the state’s wider culture-war fights over diversity programmes. The governor has described DEI initiatives as discriminatory and has made curbing them a centrepiece of his administration.

The row is the latest Florida dispute to draw national attention, following a closely watched Florida’s governor’s race earlier this month.

Delray Beach is not the only Florida city weighing what the new law permits, but its decision — cancelling a parade rooted in Irish heritage rather than a programme aimed at race or gender — has drawn national attention precisely because it shows how broadly the law’s wording reaches.

For now, both celebrations remain cancelled under the city’s current plans. Whether a private sponsor rescues the parade before March will decide if a tradition that has survived nearly six decades makes it to a 59th year.