A previous ruling by the former Dem-majority North Carolina Supreme Court against partisan gerrymandered voting district maps was overturned yesterday by the new Republican-majority Court. Two Republican judges were elected last year, giving them a 5-2 majority. They also reinstated a voter ID law that was held to be racially discriminatory by the earlier Court. From the Associated Press:
"The partisan gerrymandering ruling should make it significantly easier for the Republican-dominated legislature to help the GOP gain seats in the narrowly divided U.S. House when state lawmakers redraw congressional boundaries for the 2024 elections. Under the current map, Democrats won seven of the state’s 14 congressional seats last November.
The court, which became a Republican majority this year following the election of two GOP justices, ruled after taking the unusual step of revisiting redistricting and voter ID opinions made in December by the court’s previous iteration, when Democrats held a 4-3 seat advantage." (our emphasis)
By grouping Democratic voters into a small number of voting districts, the Republicans have been able over the years to skew Congressional district makeup decidedly in their favor, despite the statewide popular votes being closely split. The decision to reinstate voter ID requirements was held earlier to discriminate against disadvantaged people of color, who are less likely to operate motor vehicles but who are more likely to vote Democratic.
The games being played in North Carolina and in many other states where Republicans have the upper hand in the legislature or state courts is a sign that they have to resort to political and electoral subterfuges to maintain their power, rather than take their chances in free and fair elections where the voters choose their representatives, not the other way around.
(photo: North Carolina Supreme Court chamber)
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