Judge Rejects Racial Gerrymandering Claims in North Carolina Senate Maps

The plaintiffs argued that the maps violated the Voting Rights Act by failing to create a majority-black district.

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A judge has rejected claims that voters in two North Carolina legislative districts were the victims of racial gerrymandering.

U.S. District Judge James Dever ruled on Sept. 30 that Republicans did not illegally manipulate the boundaries of the two northeastern state districts to favor candidates.

The case stemmed from a suit against the GOP legislative leaders in November 2023, brought by two plaintiffs, one of whom is now a Democratic state House member.

The pair claimed that the state Senate districts, as approved by the General Assembly, were illegal.

According to the suit, they argued that the map violated Section 2 of the U.S. Voting Rights Act via race-based discrimination, and that lawmakers should have created a majority-black district instead of the current districts. 

The two areas in question cover about 20 counties in a region that has a significant African American population.

In 2024, white Republicans were elected to the two district seats. 

Dever wrote a 126-page order, saying that plaintiffs Moses Matthews and Rep. Rodney Pierce lacked standing to challenge one of the districts, because neither lived in the area, and they failed to provide evidence that the lines, as drawn, watered down black residents’ voting power. 

The judge also stated that Republican lawmakers didn’t have access to race-based data while mapping the new districts.

Dever pointed out that the 2024 elections, held under the 2023 maps, resulted in 38 of 170 seats going to African American candidates—roughly proportional to their population in the state.

“This case does not involve the General Assembly engaging in race-based districting or the odious practice of sorting voters based on race,” Dever wrote.

“Black voters in northeast North Carolina and throughout North Carolina have elected candidates of their choice (both white and black) with remarkable frequency and success for decades.”

A number of states are currently considering redistricting in some form.

A request from the Department of Justice prompted Texas Gov. Greg Abbott to add redistricting to a state congressional special session.

California took up redistricting in response to the possible loss of seats for Democrats in the House of Representatives.

Missouri was the third to join the push after a Sept. 12 decision by the Missouri Senate to approve a redrawn congressional map to increase Republicans’ odds in a longtime Democratic district. 

Ohio was already in the midst of a legally required congressional map redraw, due to the 2022 map passing without sufficient Democratic support to satisfy state laws. 

Additionally, Maryland and Indiana lawmakers are considering changes that could change their congressional delegation makeup.

In Maryland, however, the change would likely impact the state’s sole Republican, and in Indiana, Republicans believe they could increase their footprint if redistricting takes place. 

Redistricting is also being considered in Illinois, Florida, New York, Nebraska, Utah, and Kansas.

Joseph Lord and The Associated Press contributed to this report.