Redistricting 2017
Editorial issues scathing take on GOP maps; calls on courts to “flush this stink”
In case you missed it yesterday morning, an editorial in the Wilmington StarNews pulled no punches in describing the latest partisan gerrymander concocted by Republicans at the General Assembly. This is from “New districts; same old political manipulation”: “Voting analysts watching the results say that most of these districts will lean Republican, even though North […]
Lawmakers attempt to set their own timelines in racial gerrymandering case; court will have final say
UPDATE: The U.S. Supreme Court has officially transferred jurisdiction of North Carolina v. Covington back to the lower federal court. Read the order here. ***** While you were (probably) sleeping, North Carolina lawmakers named the committee members who will redraw racially gerrymandered legislative maps. Lawmakers committed to holding a redistricting session no later than Nov. […]
Young voters rally outside NC legislature for fair voting maps, an end to gerrymandering
Young North Carolinians gathered Wednesday morning outside the Legislature to talk about how gerrymandering affects their futures and to call on lawmakers to draw fair voting maps. The event, entitled “Fair Maps for a Fair Future,” featured college students and recent graduates from across the state who are participating in Democracy North Carolina’s summer internship […]
U.S. Supreme Court agrees to take on partisan gerrymandering in Wisconsin case that could set standards across country
The U.S. Supreme Court announced today that it would hear a partisan gerrymandering case out of Wisconsin that has the potential to affect about one-third of the maps drawn for Congress and state legislatures across the country. It’s a case North Carolinians are keeping a close eye on, since a similar court battle is brewing […]
Parties in racial gerrymandering case battling at U.S. Supreme Court over timing
The U.S. Supreme Court has another decision to make about the most recent North Carolina racial gerrymandering case, this time over expediting jurisdiction to a lower court. Attorneys for Sandra Little Covington, et. al., asked the highest court to expedite its formal issuance of a mandate, which allows the lower court to direct the General […]
Editorials: Only two possible solutions to NC’s gerrymandering mess
This morning’s lead editorial in the Fayetteville Observer (“Gerrymandering proceeds in an endless loop”) gets it right when it says it decries Republican foot dragging in drawing fair and constitutional electoral maps: “It doesn’t matter to Republican leaders that courts found 28 of the state’s House and Senate districts were illegally gerrymandered on a racial […]
Voters gather at Legislature to demand fair maps in wake of U.S. Supreme Court’s gerrymandering ruling
North Carolina voters gathered Monday afternoon in front of the Legislature downtown to demand that lawmakers begin drawing fair maps immediately to correct the racially gerrymandered ones. Just a week before the gathering, the U.S. Supreme Court affirmed that 28 of North Carolina’s House and Senate Districts were unconstitutionally racially gerrymandered. The order that the […]
Federal courts: Racial gerrymandering in NC must end
What a relief and cause for celebration it would be if North Carolina’s legislative chiefs collectively slapped their brows and exclaimed, “Oh, now we get it! We’re not allowed to draw voting districts on the basis of race! We’ll get busy right away and fix the problems!”