Friday, November 30, 2007

The recently filed lawsuit challenging North Carolina’s district maps for the state House and Senate seeks to stop the 2008 election until a new blueprint can be drafted. The plaintiffs argue that many districts do not adhere to the federal Voting Rights Act and take aim at the distasteful redistricting scheme pushed by state Democrats, who held a slim majority when the maps were drawn.

While prospects for the suit’s success are slim, North Carolina’s troubled record of drawing district lines does call for comprehensive reform to remove partisan abuse from the process. Until such change occurs, voters will continue to suffer under a system that unfairly suppresses electoral competition and unduly rewards seniority and incumbency in a patently undemocratic fashion.

North Carolina is only three years away from the start of a renewed redistricting effort, a process that will begin following the 2010 census. As usual, the party holding legislative power will likely run roughshod over the opposition, protecting its office-holders and drawing districts favorable to the retention of power.

That was the case this decade, as Democrats approved deeply flawed — and ultimately unconstitutional — maps intended to solidify their hold on power. Lawsuits challenging that reapportionment plan and the court wrangling that followed delayed elections before a final resolution in 2004. By then, the 2002 election was governed by interim districts, and the current maps perpetuate doubts about the General Assembly’s interest in promoting fairness and equality in the democratic process. more…