The N.C. General Assembly must take census results into account as members create new voting district boundaries that reflect the state’s population growth and follow strict legal criteria. Western North Carolina’s state Senate and U.S. House districts are both likely to see changes for the 2022 election cycle.
ASHEVILLE, N.C.
As currently drawn, the proposed districts would shift representation for large areas of Buncombe County. A 2011 state law also required that districts for the Buncombe County Board of Commissioners match those of the county’s House representatives. As currently drawn, the maps would move Commissioner Jasmine Beach-Ferrara from District 1 to District 2, shift Al Whitesides from District 1 to District 3 and reassign Amanda Edwards from District 2 to District 1.
“Let your state senator and representative, plus Tim Moore, speaker of the House, and Phil Berger, president pro tem of the Senate, know you support fair redistricts (vote411.org provides contact info).”
“If we desire democratic rights for ourselves and our children, this is the very moment that we must shed our tendency of quiet civility and shout, collectively, loud enough that the court in Washington is aware that American citizens will accept nothing short of the legacy the Continental Congress intended for us after blood was shed for this nation’s freedom.”
On Nov. 4, the League of Women Voters hosted a 5K in West Asheville to show what meandering redistricting looks like on the ground. Participants, many clad in pussy hats, colorful tutus and rainbow socks, ran and walked along a route that traced the line between the 10th and 11th districts.
Asheville Mayor Esther Manheimer held a press conference Thursday, May 11, to highlight House Bill 200, which seeks to end gerrymandering on a statewide level. Asheville residents affiliated with Common Cause NC, a nonprofit organization based out of Raleigh, also spoke against gerrymandering within congressional districts and the need to support the proposed legislation.
Veteran national journalist and commentator Bill Moyers examines state politics in a new documentary, “North Carolina: Battleground State.”
With state legislators opting not to vote on redistricting reform this year, local bipartisan supporters rallied in downtown Asheville Aug. 1 to start campaigning on behalf of passing the measure in 2014.
Ahead of the last election, Buncombe County was split between two congressional districts, and lines were redrawn in ways that helped Republicans get elected to the N.C. Statehouse and Buncombe County Board of Commissioners. Now, a new study shows how gerrymandering distorts elections in North Carolina, while a new poll finds overwhelming public support for changing the redistricting process.
North Carolina politics remains in the national spotlight: New York Times guest columnist Sam Wang analyzes “The Great Gerrymander of 2012” — and includes a look at the power of GOP redistricting in the state.
Uncounted votes from Warren Wilson College residents could determine which political party has a majority of members on the new Buncombe County Board of Commissioners.
Democrats controlled the N.C. Legislature for 140 years. Less than two years after Republicans took control of the North Carolina General Assembly, they skillfully managed to get a constitutional amendment passed, voiding all civil unions as well as guaranteeing [that] gay men and women in North Carolina have no equal protection under the law and […]
Last year’s statewide redistricting pulled voting districts into unfamiliar shapes and posed challenges to local officials.
According to a study released by the Center for Public Integrity and Global Integrity, North Carolina gets a C- on its corruption risk report card and failed in three areas: public access to information, state budgeting processes and redistricting. The report cards are a part of the State Integrity Investigation project. (Image courtesy of the State Integrity Investigation project)
At a Feb. 22 forum hosted by the Asheville-Buncombe County League of Women Voters, Dr. George Peery sought to contextualize new Western North Carolina political districts that have “spawned shocked incredulity, smug sentiments of justifiable payback, outrage, support, and baffled indifference,” he said.
If you’re not sure which voting district you belong to anymore, chances are you’re not alone. But a new online webpage (released by Buncombe County GIS and the Office of Election Services) hopes to help voters find the information they need to get to the polls.
State legislators and activists came together in a Biltmore Forest home last night, Dec. 8, to build support for redistricting reform in North Carolina.
Today, Dec. 8, at local bookstore Malaprops, Jane Pinsky (left) of the N.C. Coalition for Lobbying and Government Reform recognized Rep. Ray Rapp (center right) and several other Western North Carolina legislators who support redistricting reform. (photo by Max Cooper)
Rep. Patrick McHenry made his first “public” appearance in Asheville with a talk before the Council of Independent Business Owners [“The Beat,” Nov. 16 Xpress]. McHenry is following the sinister Republican game plan: stay away from announced, truly open-to-the-public events, where he would face the anger and criticism that he deserves. The GOP’s unapologetic, pro-wealth, […]
An email sent out by the National Republican Congressional Committee targets 11th District Rep. Heath Shuler, blaming the Haywood County Democrat for what seems to be the impending failure of the bipartisian “Super Committee” to endorse a plan to cut the deficit. Although Shuler wasn’t on the committee, the national effort could be the opening salvo in its effort to soften his support and unseat him next year.
