NC Supreme Court: gerrymandered GOP-favoring districts unconstitutional

[essentialsaltes]

LINK
A state court in North Carolina unanimously struck down Republican-led efforts to maintain state legislative districts on Tuesday, holding that they amount to unconstitutional partisan gerrymanders that violate the state's Constitution.

The court held that state House and Senate maps enacted in 2017 are "significantly tainted in that they unconstitutionally deprive every citizen of the right to elections for members of the General Assembly conducted freely and honestly to ascertain, fairly and truthfully, the will of the People," according to the opinion.

 

[iluvatar5150]

Good.

 

[essentialsaltes]

Edging toward constitutional crisis time.

Those unconstitutional districts have unconstitutional legislators; and it's unconstitutional for them to change the constitution.

In a ruling hailed by North Carolina's chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, the state Supreme Court on Friday said the state constitution can't be amended by lawmakers if they come from districts with borders created in a racially-gerrymandered way.

The 4-3 decision sends back to a lower court a case involving the process by which the North Carolina general assembly can amend its state constitution.

For the legal eagles and beagles: the decision.

 

[essentialsaltes]

Those unconstitutional districts have unconstitutional legislators; and it's unconstitutional for them to change the constitution.

In a ruling hailed by North Carolina's chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, the state Supreme Court on Friday said the state constitution can't be amended by lawmakers if they come from districts with borders created in a racially-gerrymandered way.

North Carolina GOP: You've had first state supreme court ruling, yes, but what about second state supreme court ruling?

In win for GOP, NC Supreme Court positioned to reverse major voting rights cases​

The North Carolina Supreme Court's decision Friday to rehear a high-profile redistricting case and a controversial voter ID case indicates that the court's new GOP majority plans to undo voting rights rulings that had been seen as victories for Democrats.

Republican lawmakers lost the nationally watched redistricting case — Harper v. Hall — last year, when the court ruled that extreme partisan gerrymandering is unconstitutional.

Writing for the majority Friday, however, Republican Justice Trey Allen said that the court is allowed to rehear cases when it’s possible “that the opinion may be erroneous.”

That’s what GOP leaders argued in a Jan. 20 court filing, less than three weeks after Allen and fellow new Republican Justice Richard Dietz were sworn in, flipping the court from a 4-3 Democratic majority to 5-2 in favor of Republicans.

“Respect for the institution and the integrity of its processes kept opportunities for rehearing narrow in scope and exceedingly rare,” [Justice Earls] wrote. “Today, that tradition is abandoned. Nothing has changed since we rendered our opinion in this case on 16 December 2022: The legal issues are the same; the evidence is the same; and the controlling law is the same. The only thing that has changed is the political composition of the Court.”

 

[Pommer]

North Carolina GOP: You've had first state supreme court ruling, yes, but what about second state supreme court ruling?

In win for GOP, NC Supreme Court positioned to reverse major voting rights cases​

The North Carolina Supreme Court's decision Friday to rehear a high-profile redistricting case and a controversial voter ID case indicates that the court's new GOP majority plans to undo voting rights rulings that had been seen as victories for Democrats.

Republican lawmakers lost the nationally watched redistricting case — Harper v. Hall — last year, when the court ruled that extreme partisan gerrymandering is unconstitutional.

Writing for the majority Friday, however, Republican Justice Trey Allen said that the court is allowed to rehear cases when it’s possible “that the opinion may be erroneous.”

That’s what GOP leaders argued in a Jan. 20 court filing, less than three weeks after Allen and fellow new Republican Justice Richard Dietz were sworn in, flipping the court from a 4-3 Democratic majority to 5-2 in favor of Republicans.

“Respect for the institution and the integrity of its processes kept opportunities for rehearing narrow in scope and exceedingly rare,” [Justice Earls] wrote. “Today, that tradition is abandoned. Nothing has changed since we rendered our opinion in this case on 16 December 2022: The legal issues are the same; the evidence is the same; and the controlling law is the same. The only thing that has changed is the political composition of the Court.”

Well how about that!
“Legal decisions” follow political-party dogma, because legal principles aren’t!

 

[essentialsaltes]

North Carolina GOP: You've had first state supreme court ruling, yes, but what about second state supreme court ruling?

In win for GOP, NC Supreme Court positioned to reverse major voting rights cases​

North Carolina’s new GOP gerrymander could flip four House seats​

The new map will remake the state’s delegation from an even split of seven Democrats and seven Republicans to one that would likely lock in 10 Republicans and three Democrats, with one competitive battleground seat that Democratic Rep. Don Davis currently holds.

The state used a court-drawn map with a handful of competitive districts for the midterm elections; the new proposal was created by the GOP supermajorities in the state’s legislative chambers.

After the decennial census, the Republican-controlled state legislature drew a congressional map in 2021 that was heavily tilted toward the GOP — and the liberal state Supreme Court struck it down as an illegal partisan gerrymander. That led to the court-drawn map in use last year.

But Republicans flipped control of the state Supreme Court in the midterms, and the new conservative majority decided to rehear that decision — a highly unusual move. That court ultimately ruled that it would no longer litigate partisan gerrymandering, giving the Republican legislature a free pass to draw lines to their own advantage.

 

[Pommer]

North Carolina’s new GOP gerrymander could flip four House seats​

The new map will remake the state’s delegation from an even split of seven Democrats and seven Republicans to one that would likely lock in 10 Republicans and three Democrats, with one competitive battleground seat that Democratic Rep. Don Davis currently holds.

The state used a court-drawn map with a handful of competitive districts for the midterm elections; the new proposal was created by the GOP supermajorities in the state’s legislative chambers.

After the decennial census, the Republican-controlled state legislature drew a congressional map in 2021 that was heavily tilted toward the GOP — and the liberal state Supreme Court struck it down as an illegal partisan gerrymander. That led to the court-drawn map in use last year.

But Republicans flipped control of the state Supreme Court in the midterms, and the new conservative majority decided to rehear that decision — a highly unusual move. That court ultimately ruled that it would no longer litigate partisan gerrymandering, giving the Republican legislature a free pass to draw lines to their own advantage.

How nice for North Carolinians (who are Republicans); now that they effectively “own the State” any “problems” are also theirs.

 

[Desk trauma]

How nice for North Carolinians (who are Republicans); now that they effectively “own the State” any “problems” are also theirs.

As a denizen of said state I can say, oh no, they are not accepting that responsibility.

 

[essentialsaltes]

North Carolina’s new GOP gerrymander could flip four House seats​

But Republicans flipped control of the state Supreme Court in the midterms, and the new conservative majority decided to rehear that decision — a highly unusual move. That court ultimately ruled that it would no longer litigate partisan gerrymandering, giving the Republican legislature a free pass to draw lines to their own advantage.

per Lisa Desjardins, the GOP has picked up 3 House seats from the gerrymandering of North Carolina.

 

[essentialsaltes]

North Carolina redistricting trial begins over racial gerrymandering claims​

North Carolina congressional and legislative districts drawn by Republicans in 2023 that helped them retain majorities in Raleigh and Washington are in court