Redrawing Texas's electoral map with a goal of increasing Republican seats; could North Carolina consider a similar move?
North Carolina, known for its historically contentious redistricting efforts, finds itself in the midst of another significant battle over electoral maps. Unlike their counterparts in Texas, North Carolina Democrats cannot easily flee to block a vote on new congressional maps due to the state's lower quorum requirements.
In North Carolina, a simple majority is sufficient for a quorum, allowing the GOP majority to hold votes without Democratic lawmakers present. This contrasts with Texas, where a two-thirds quorum is required, forcing Democrats to be present for business to proceed.
Furthermore, under North Carolina House rules, if a quorum is not present, 15 members can compel absent members to attend and even order their forcible return. While Democratic lawmakers have walked out of sessions before to make a political statement, such walkouts have not prevented votes due to the GOP's majority and quorum rules.
The redrawn maps, approved by North Carolina Republicans following the Supreme Court's newly elected Republican majority ruling that partisan gerrymandering was a political question that the courts could not weigh in on, resulted in North Carolina electing 10 Republicans and four Democrats in 2024, a shift from the 2022 elections where a court-drawn map elected an even seven Republicans and seven Democrats.
However, the redrawn map has faced legal challenges. Voters have filed federal lawsuits alleging that the new maps illegally dilute the voting power of Black North Carolinians and other members of racial and ethnic minority groups. Courts at both the state and federal level have held that partisan gerrymandering is no longer a legal claim they will rule on, giving state lawmakers free rein to draw maps that benefit their party.
The redrawn map has also drawn attention due to the changes made in the northeastern corner of the state, which has a significant Black population. If redrawn, the 1st district, the only district that could feasibly be reworked to more significantly favor Republicans, could face further legal scrutiny.
Meanwhile, Republican Party resources may already be stretched thin, as they may be expending massive sums of money in other states to defend new maps. This could potentially reduce the "bang for the buck" in redrawing the maps in North Carolina.
The potential for further redistricting plans ahead of the midterms remains uncertain, with Senate leader Phil Berger and House Speaker Destin Hall not responding to a request for comment. However, it seems unlikely that North Carolina lawmakers would approve a new congressional map before the midterms.
The redistricting battle in North Carolina is not isolated, as Republican-led legislatures in Ohio and Missouri, as well as Democrats in New York and California, are considering joining the redistricting fight.
[1] Source: [URL for the first source] [2] Source: [URL for the second source]
- The ongoing redistricting battle in North Carolina, marked by the GOP's approval of new electoral maps and subsequent legal challenges, highlights the politically charged nature of policy-and-legislation and war-and-conflicts, as both parties grapple for control and representation in war-and-conflicts zones like the legislative arena.
- Meanwhile, the potential for further redistricting plans, considering the ongoing legal challenges and the impact of politics on decision-making, places crime-and-justice and general-news in the spotlight, as the implications of these changes could affect the rights and representation of various communities, particularly racial and ethnic minorities.
