2023-10-02 21:34:52
North Carolina voters brace for new political maps; A shakeup in district lines expected
“Vote Here” sign in Asheville, NC – With a state budget complete, North Carolina state lawmakers have turned their attention to the state’s political maps. Voters could soon see new congressional lines and changing State House and State Senate districts. (Photo credit: WLOS Staff)br
ASHEVILLE, N.C. (WLOS) —
With a state budget completeNorth Carolina state lawmakers have turned their attention to the state’s political maps. Voters could soon see new congressional lines and changing State House and State Senate districts.
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News 13 talked with local lawmakers and political experts about the changes expected.
Voters heading to the poll in February for early voting in North Carolina’s Primary Election could be the first to experience the changes that will be rolled out in the coming weeks.
Since 2011, there have been six different versions of political maps from Congressional District to State House and State Senate district. While they weren’t all used in elections, it’s enough for voter’s heads to spin.
“By the end of this year we’re going to have three new sets of maps and those may very well look like the original maps that were proposed last go around,” said Chris Cooper, PhD, Western Carolina University Political Science & Public Affairs Department.
Dr. Cooper says voters should be prepared for yet another change and explained what’s behind the new action.
“The state Supreme Court has changed partisan hands, so the last court that said they were unconstitutional gerrymanders, that State Supreme Court was controlled by Democrats,” he says. “The State Supreme Court today is controlled by Republicans.”
The draft of new Congressional, State House and State Senate districts maps haven’t been unveiled. Senator Julie Mayfield (D-49), who sits on the Senate’s Redistricting Committee, says she has suspicions about what Buncombe County voters will see.
“They can certainly move the House lines between and among our three House seats to try to create a district that is more likely to elect a Republican,” Mayfield said on Monday.
Efforts to reach out to Senator Ralph Hise (R-47), Alleghany, Ashe, Avery, Caldwell, Haywood, Madison, Mitchell, Watauga and Yancey went unanswered on Monday. While changes to the 11th Congressional District could be slight, State Rep. Caleb Rudow (D-116) claims the changes make it “tough for voters to trust the system.”
“My guess is that our district will see some of the smaller amounts of changes that we’re going to see across the state,” Cooper told News 13. “With that said, there was a previous map this last go around that would have had the 11th (Congressional District) stretching all the way up into Boone, North Carolina.”
Areas around Mecklenburg County could see the biggest shake up still. Local voters should keep a close eye on the new maps.
“You can always email your legislator or the entire General Assembly if you want to and I would encourage people to do that once the maps come out if you have strong feelings about it,” said Sen. Mayfield.
According to Cooper, while laws around challenging the redrawn maps have changed, there could still be legal challenges.
“I would expect lawsuits again,” he said. “It’s North Carolina, therefore probably going to see some lawsuits but in terms of when it’s going to matter for the voter, I would say when you go to vote in 2024 one way or the other we’re going to have new lines. We’re going to have new maps and its going to happen before the primary election.”
It’s uncertain when the draft maps might be released. The new lines won’t impact the upcoming November Municipal Elections.
A representative from the Buncombe County Republican Party said they are working to send a response to this story. This story will be updated with any further comments from officials.
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