Posted on 09/04/2019 2:22:39 PM PDT by Coronal
Just over a month after the Supreme Court effectively punted the partisan fight over gerrymandering to state courts, a North Carolina trial court has rejected state legislative district maps, saying lawmakers took extreme advantage to help elect a maximum number of Republicans.
The three-judge panel of state judges unanimously ruled Tuesday that courts can step in to decide when partisan advantage goes so far that it diminishes democracy. The judges gave lawmakers two weeks to try again.
"Partisan intent predominated over all other redistricting criteria resulting in extreme partisan gerrymandered legislative maps," the judges wrote in their ruling. "The effect of these carefully crafted partisan maps is that, in all but the most unusual election scenarios, the Republican Party will control a majority of both chambers of the General Assembly. In other words, the Court finds that in many election environments, it is the carefully crafted maps, and not the will of the voters, that dictate the election outcomes in a significant number of legislative districts and, ultimately, the majority control of the General Assembly."
Lawyers for North Carolina Republican legislators had argued there was no clear way for judges to know what kinds of map-making is unacceptable, since "redistricting is political because of what it is, not because of who does it." Any complaints about how districts were drawn would vanish if Democrats could lead some GOP voters to change their minds and voted with them, GOP lawyers said.
Nevertheless, the state judges specifically found that the way the majority-Republican General Assembly redrew legislative district maps in 2017 violated the rights of Democratic voters under the state constitution's equal protection and freedom of assembly clauses.
(Excerpt) Read more at foxnews.com ...
Just like Pennsylvania
REPUBS WHY DO YOU KEEP GIVING AWAY THE US HOUSE AND NEVER FIGHT - P*SSIES?
In fact it is required.
“courts can step in to decide when partisan advantage goes so far that it diminishes democracy”
But it’s cool when you gerrymander a state into warped districts designed to elect the favored non-white ethnicity du jour.
“the rights of Democratic voters under the state constitution’s equal protection and freedom of assembly clauses.”
Wha?
Didn’t SCOTUS already rule that judges had no say in this?
Just like FL too.
The NC legislature should send a tourist map and crayons to their supremes with the note, “Go ahead. Make law, design the districts yourselves.”
JMHo
But when dems are the majority in a state and draw up districts advantagous to their party that is acceptable?
Hey judge, up yours pal
It appears the Deep State will have its way. The real test will be after 2020 Census. If the courts step in to shift districts to Democrats favor then the fix is in . All the work the Republican Party did over the last 20 years to elect state legislatures. That has always been how legislative seats had been allotted. It was always OK during the years that the Democrats were in control for them that changed and then it became unfair. This is just another nail in the coffin of this country.
Non-elected partisan Judges CAN be partisan, but elected partisan representatives CANNOT!
WRONG!
If you know a bit about the Reconstruction era in the South, then you know that saying the current democrat pols are the most corrupt in State history is saying a lot.
I thought I recalled that.
They all go to the same liberal law schools. Not surprised at all. This will be appealed.
Game over. Heads the left wins, tails the left loses, but either way they win OR ELSE!!!
A line needs to be drawn and the democratically elected legislatures need to take their power back from the courts. Impeach these judges ASAP. Send them a message and also pass legislation or amend the state constitution to say that the courts have no say.
SCOTUS ruled against FEDERAL judges. This decision was by North Carolina judges.
Bump
Draw along the lattitude lines and longitude and be done with it. If we lived through the last 50 years we can learn to fight harder to inform people and live through the next 50.
Oh, so it’s like when Arizona had to obey Obama, but California doesn’t have to obey Trump. Why don’t we just have CNN and MSNBC make these rulings. They would be exactly the same.
Not quite as this is for state leg districts (Congressional untouched, for now) but otherwise yes.
For some reason NC has a 7-2 (or 8-1?) communist State Supreme Court (like Florida’s used to be). Funny how no one cared that democrats drew the map to advantage themselves in 1982, 92, and 2002,
GOP leaders say they won’t fight it.
Doesn’t mean rats will win NC leg, GOP will still be drawing the new map but it won’t be as nice as the current map.
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