High stakes for NC voters with gerrymandering derby 

LAMAR CARTER | ADOBE STOCK

Republican lawmakers have pledged to create another safe congressional district for the GOP when the North Carolina General Assembly convenes next week. The most likely target is the 1st Congressional District, where Rep. Don Davis, a Black Democrat, is the incumbent.

North Carolina is joining the gerrymandering race, which has long-term implications for Black voters.

Republican lawmakers announced Monday they will return to Raleigh next week to redraw the legislative map to give the GOP a better chance to add an 11th Republican representative in Washington. The most likely target is the Republican-leaning 1st Congressional District now represented by Don Davis, a Black Democrat. 

According to Data USA, 47.4% of the district’s residents are white and 40.2% Black.

President Donald Trump demanded earlier this year that Texas, which has the nation’s largest Republican-majority congressional delegation, redraw its maps to carve out five more GOP-leaning districts to ward off potential Democratic gains in next year’s midterm elections. Other Republican-leaning states followed suit, as did Democratic strongholds California and Illinois. California voters will decide via referendum next month whether to permit redistricting.

Typically, redrawing district maps are limited to immediately after the national census, which occurs every 10 years. The most recent census was in 2020.

“President Trump earned a clear mandate from the voters of North Carolina and the rest of the country, and we intend to defend it by drawing an additional Republican Congressional seat,” House Speaker Destin Hall (R-Caldwell) said in a statement. “Our state won’t stand by while Democrats like (California Gov.) Gavin Newsom redraw districts to aid in their effort to obtain a majority in the U.S. House. We will not allow them to undermine the will of the voters and President Trump’s agenda.” 

 
Democrats accused Republicans of kowtowing to Trump’s demand for protection against accountability. As the congressional chamber that controls government appropriations, a Democratic-controlled House would determine federal spending as well as oversight.

“Republican lawmakers made clear today that they plan to come back to Raleigh and disenfranchise the voters of this state,” House Democratic Leader Robert Reives (D-Chatham) said. “Instead of lowering costs for families or ensuring Medicaid can stay afloat, they are hellbent on consolidating as much power as they can. Call it what it is: They are stealing a congressional district in order to shield themselves from accountability at the ballot box.”

Said Senate Leader Phil Berger (R-Rockingham): “We are doing everything we can to protect President Trump’s agenda, which means safeguarding Republican control of Congress. Picking up where Texas left off, we will hold votes in our October session to redraw North Carolina’s congressional map to ensure Gavin Newsom doesn’t decide the congressional majority.”  

Gerrymandering has long been a sticky subject in North Carolina politics, primarily because of the state’s racial history. Numerous lawsuits have been filed by Democrats and Republicans since 1992 when Mel Watt of Charlotte and Eva Clayton of Warrenton were the first Black representatives elected since 1901. Civil and voting rights advocates contend that Republican-draw districts dilute the strength of Black voters while GOP lawmakers contend – and courts have backed – gerrymanders for political purposes.

The U.S. Supreme Court is hearing such a case in Louisiana v. Callais that centers on Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act – the primary safeguard against racially discriminatory redistricting. If the justices strike down Section 2, it could result in another 19 safe Republican seats compared to 2024 and 24 overall, which would virtually guarantee years of House GOP control, according to Fair Fight Action, a nonprofit founded by former Georgia gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams to expand voting rights.

“This is about more than lines on a map – it could decide whether millions of Black, Latino, and other voters of color still have a voice in our representative democracy,” said Lauren Groh-Wargo, CEO of Fair Fight Action, which published a report earlier this month on the impact of Section 2’s elimination. “We’re watching the GOP advance to the endgame of a decades-long strategy to dismantle the Voting Rights Act and lock in their own power. If Section 2 is struck down, the court will be dragging us back to a pre-1965 America where racist maps blocked entire communities from having fair political representation.”

There isn’t much of North Carolina’s congressional pie left for Republicans to divvy. They hold a 10-4 majority in the House delegation despite earning only 53% of the congressional vote – primarily outside urban areas along the Interstate 85 corridor. Davis, who won his seat in 2024 by less than 2% of the votes cast, represents a competitive rural district in the northeast.

“Republican leaders are back at it again rigging elections instead of doing their jobs,” Senate Democratic Leader Sydney Batch (D-Wake) said. “They know their ideas are out of step with the people of North Carolina and that’s why they keep trying to rewrite the rules to cling to power.

“For 105 days now, Republicans have failed to pass a state budget. Instead, they’ve gutted healthcare access, stalled progress on Medicaid expansion, and ignored the rising costs that working families face every day. But somehow, they’ve found time to return to Raleigh to redraw congressional lines and try to squeeze out a few more votes in their failing districts. That tells you everything you need to know about their priorities and who they serve.”

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