RALEIGH, N.C. — Plaintiffs in the state’s latest redistricting lawsuit asked federal judge James Dever Monday to speed up hearings on their request to block the new state Senate map before filing for the 2024 elections opens on Dec. 4.
Dever agreed to require a response from the State Board of Elections by the Monday after Thanksgiving, with possible oral arguments slated for Nov. 29, toward the goal of reaching a decision by the end of the week.
The plaintiffs in the case are two Black voters who say the recent redrawing of the Senate maps split up Black voters from a district that frequently elected Black candidates into newly redrawn districts where their power will be diluted.
Plaintiff Rodney Pierce lives in Halifax County, and plaintiff Moses Matthews lives in Martin County, both of which were formerly in District 3.
According to plaintiffs’ attorney Stanton Jones, the former District 3 had a voting age citizen population that was 44.47% Black, which made it what’s known as a “minority opportunity district” where Black voters could influence the outcome of an election.
The recently passed Senate maps sweep both Halifax and Martin counties, along with several other counties with large populations of Black voters, into a sprawling new District 2, which has a voting age citizen population that is 31.51% Black, according to Jones.
Senate Republicans declined to comment on the lawsuit, but said during the debate over the maps that they did not use racial data.
Senate Democratic Leader Dan Blue, who is not a party to the case, told WRAL News he doesn’t believe that argument will stand up in court. Alabama lawmakers tried a similar argument in a redistricting case before the U.S. Supreme Court earlier this year.
“In the Alabama decision, Chief Justice Roberts of the United States Supreme Court indicated that, you know, ‘Look, don’t play that game. We know that you know what race is involved here. And you know where the racial flaws are.’ And I think that that’s pretty much the case here,” Blue said.
If Dever decides to put the Senate candidate filings on hold, it wouldn’t be unprecedented. But it’s not clear what it would mean for other elections for which filing opens next week. The lawsuit doesn’t address state House or Congressional maps.
State Elections Board spokesman Pat Gannon says it will be up to Dever to decide which, if any, candidate filings to put on hold.
In December 2021, the state Supreme Court delayed filing because of a lawsuit over partisan gerrymandering in new House, Senate and Congressional district maps. The 2022 primary was delayed from March to May to allow redrawn maps to be used.
In February 2016, federal courts forced North Carolina to redraw Congressional maps because of racial gerrymandering. However, candidate filing had already closed and the ballots were already printed for the statewide primary March 15. That election went on as scheduled, but the Congressional primaries didn’t count. Instead, Congressional hopefuls had to re-file the day after the election for a special Congressional primary held June 7, 2016.
Blue suspects the Pierce lawsuit would lead only to the delay of Senate candidate filings.
“It’s the Senate that did it. And, you know, that was a calculated decision by the Republican leadership to sort of jam the courts from doing anything in this cycle,” Blue said. “If an election process has started, the courts are reluctant to get involved and put it off.
“I think that there’s a sense of urgency with this one,” Blue continued. “We know what the game that’s being played is, and it’s just unfair for the voters to basically make them go through elections under districts that are clearly illegal.”
However, Blue said, “You can rest assured other lawsuits are coming with much broader attacks on this redistricting plan.”
