Gov. Ron DeSantis’ tourism oversight board is firing back against The Walt Disney Co. with its own lawsuit.

The five-member board voted Monday to sue Disney in state court just days after the entertainment giant sued DeSantis, the board and other state officials in federal court.

“We have no choice now but to respond. … We’ll seek justice in our own backyard,” board chairman Martin Garcia said.

The previous Disney-controlled Reedy Creek Improvement District’s board made procedural missteps that render the “one-sided” development deals void and unenforceable, the new board’s lawyers argue in a complaint filed in Orange County Circuit Court after Monday’s meeting.

The lawsuit asks for the courts to declare the deals void and block Disney from enforcing them.

Disney did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The Central Florida Tourism Oversight District’s action came after Disney filed suit in federal court on Wednesday in Tallahassee, alleging a “targeted campaign of government retaliation.” That legal action took place as board members voided development agreements approved by their Disney-friendly predecessors.

Disney wants the courts to uphold its development agreements and undo the Florida Legislature’s action that gave DeSantis the power to pick the members of a special district that oversees Disney World’s government services.

Disney’s attorneys say the agreements were lawfully approved in open meetings, and the state is using its power to unconstitutionally punish Disney for opposing DeSantis’ legislative agenda.

The suit includes quotes from DeSantis and his allies lashing out against Disney because it opposed the Parental Rights in Education Law, which critics called “don’t say gay.” That legislation limited classroom instruction on sexual orientation and gender identity in public schools.

“There is no room for disagreement about what happened here: Disney expressed its opinion on state legislation and was then punished by the state for doing so,” Disney’s lawyers wrote.

As DeSantis blasted Disney as a “woke” corporation, state lawmakers voted to overhaul the Reedy Creek Improvement District, which oversees government services for Disney World. Legislators voted to replace the five members elected by Disney with members appointed by the governor, upending an arrangement that essentially allowed Disney to self-govern its Florida theme parks and resorts for more than five decades .

Speaking Monday in Brevard County, DeSantis reiterated his position that he is seeking corporate accountability and acting on behalf of Floridians who voted last year to give him a second term.

“We’re implementing the will of the people, and for them [Disney] to act like they have the ability to veto that basically is putting their thumb in the eye of the voters of this state,” he said.

Garcia said the new board is trying to “promote the public good” by bringing innovation to Disney’s special district.

“In essence, Disney is asking a federal court in Tallahassee to wrestle back the hands of time to 1967 while this board is instead charged legislatively with bringing the district into the 21st Century with new and better policies and practices,” Garcia said.

Board member Ron Peri, CEO of the Christian ministry The Gathering, lamented how the board has been portrayed in the news media, saying he has been mocked by the comedian Stephen Colbert and others.

Peri shared a baseless conspiracy theory that hormones in tap water could be turning people gay, CNN reported, posting audio from a January 2022 Zoom session.

Peri clarified at the board’s meeting Monday that he does not subscribe to that belief.

“I have gotten hate mail every day,” he said. “I’ve gotten phone calls from people who are just so angry.”

sswisher@orlandosentinel.com