North Carolina Supreme Court Rejects Legislature’s 2021 Redistricting Maps. Redraw Ordered.

By EditorFeb 06, 2022
On Friday, the North Carolina State Supreme Court overturned a lower court ruling that upheld the legislature's 2021 congressional and state legislative maps against both racial and partisan gerrymandering claims. The court ordered the General Assembly to submit remedial maps for review to the trial court on or before Feb. 18 at 5:00 p.m. The trial court must approve or adopt compliant congressional and state legislative districting plans no later than noon on Feb. 23 2022. Read the Order. The State Supreme Court accepted and agreed with the trial court's assessment that the maps were a partisan gerrymander. The difference…
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North Carolina’s Redistricting Maps Upheld by State Trial Court

By EditorJan 12, 2022
On Wednesday, Jan. 11th a North Carolina state trial court upheld the congressional and state legislative maps drawn by the Republican-dominated legislature in Nov of 2021. Read the opinion and excerpts below. Here is a breakdown of the court's conclusions of law regarding each allegation: Partisan Gerrymandering in Violation of the NC Constitution's Free Elections Clause: "The Free Elections Clause does not operate as a restraint on the General Assembly’s ability to redistrict for partisan advantage." Equal Protection Clause of the NC Constitution: "The Court finds that the plans are amply supported by arational basis and thus do not violate…
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Duke University Prof. Will Discuss “Monte Carlo” Sampling Method for Fair Redistricting Maps

Duke University Prof. Will Discuss “Monte Carlo” Sampling Method for Fair Redistricting Maps

By EditorJul 03, 2021
Monte Carlo sampling is generally a numerical method of solving mathematical problems through random sampling. When applied to redistricting, many academics advocate its use either to ferret out extreme gerrymandering or to produce more fairly drawn maps in the first place. Professor of Mathematics Jonathan Christopher Mattingly of Duke University, will be discussing the Monte Carlo method in-depth as it applies to redistricting on July 20th as the I.E. Block Community Lecturer at the Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics (SIAM) virtual annual meeting. Mattingly has served as an expert witness in several high-profile restricting cases, including the recent U.S. Supreme Court case…
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Second State Invalidates Redistricting Map Based on Common State Constitutional Provision

Second State Invalidates Redistricting Map Based on Common State Constitutional Provision

By Michelle DavisSep 05, 2019
September 5, 2019 “the Free Elections Clause of the North Carolina Constitution guarantees that all elections must be conducted freely and honestly to ascertain, fairly and truthfully, the will of the People and that this is a fundamental right of North Carolina citizens, a compelling governmental interest, and a cornerstone of our democratic form of government.” These are the words of the three-judge panel in North Carolina's state trial court. Following Pennsylvania's lead in League of Women Voters of Pa. v. Pennsylvania, which invalidated that state's congressional map - The North Carolina court gave legislative leaders until September 17th to…
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The Supreme Court’s Less Than Graceful Exit from the Thicket

The Supreme Court’s Less Than Graceful Exit from the Thicket

By Michelle DavisJun 27, 2019
The long-awaited partisan gerrymandering decision has come down from the nation's highest court. A 5-4 majority decided to exit the "political thicket" and leave the policing of political gerrymandered redistricting maps to the States, commissions, congress; anybody, except the nine of them. Below are brief excerpts (with explanation) from the both the majority opinion and a passionate dissent from Justice Kagan in the consolidated cases of Lamone v. Benisek, ET Al. (Maryland) and Rucho v. Common Cause, ET Al. (North Carolina). Read the entire case here. The Court: Partisan gerrymandering claims present political questions beyond the reach of the federal…
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Listen to Supreme Court Oral Arguments in the North Carolina Partisan Gerrymandering Case

Listen to Supreme Court Oral Arguments in the North Carolina Partisan Gerrymandering Case

By Michelle DavisApr 25, 2019
On March 26, the Supreme Court heard oral argument in Rucho v. Common Cause, a partisan gerrymandering case from North Carolina.Click here for background on this case and its companion case, Benesik v. Lamone (Maryland). For a pre oral symposium hosted by ScotusBlog, click here. Click here to listen to oral argument in its companion case, Benesik v. Lamone.
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MD and NC Partisan Gerrymandering Cases Return to the U.S. Supreme Court

MD and NC Partisan Gerrymandering Cases Return to the U.S. Supreme Court

By Michelle DavisJan 08, 2019
On January 4th, the U.S. Supreme Court took up two long-standing partisan gerrymandering challenges on appeal from two federal district courts; one in Maryland and the other in North Carolina.  The question in both of these cases was not whether there was partisan gerrymandering in the making of these maps. Instead it was whether this type of partisan gerrymandering is constitutional or not.  The high court has seemed to duck and weave whenever it has been presented with this question in the past, but this time it feels different. Below is a little background to provide some context for the…
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Redistricting Weekly Update : Atlases and Mathematicians in the Fray

Redistricting Weekly Update : Atlases and Mathematicians in the Fray

By EditorJan 29, 2018
  The FiveThirtyEight Blog Releases the Atlas of Redistricting, The Maps are Impressive but Unusable  FiveThirtyEight takes a comprehensive look at the mapping possibilities for every congressional district in the nation.  None of the maps would pass legal muster though.  At best, the Atlas of Redistricting is a rough thought experiment that can give us a good idea of what different redistricting priorities produce on a map - - just in very very broad brushstrokes.  read more. Pennsylvania Republicans appeal congressional map partisan gerrymander decision to the U.S. Supreme Court.  In a long-shot bid, Republicans appeal the state supreme court's decision…
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A Quick History of North Carolina Redistricting Litigation Post 2010

A Quick History of North Carolina Redistricting Litigation Post 2010

By EditorJan 22, 2018
North Carolina - The redistricting process in North Carolina has the makings of a classic thriller. There are twists, turns, politics, intrigue, and edge of your seat courtroom drama.  Not to mention the crazy quilt of maps.  Here is an overview of what has happened so far in this state’s district drawing saga. (more…)
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U.S. Supreme Court Stays Lower Court Order to Redraw North Carolina Congressional Map

U.S. Supreme Court Stays Lower Court Order to Redraw North Carolina Congressional Map

By EditorJan 19, 2018
North Carolina -  This just in.  The U.S. Supreme Court has stayed a lower court order to redraw North Carolina's congressional districts.  That court recently found the North Carolina map to be an unconstitutional partisan gerrymander and ordered that the map be redrawn in time for the 2018 elections.  Does this mean the court will likely overturn this case in the end?  (more…)
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