RALEIGH, N.C. — State lawmakers have started the official committee work to get new redistricted election maps approved for the 2024 election cycle.
North Carolina has earned a national reputation for its difficulty in getting maps that can pass muster in court. Now, it’s getting national attention for how this new round of maps were drawn.
No matter which party is in power, they are likely to draw district maps on both the state and congressional levels that would give them an advantage during the next election cycle. However, over the last several decades these maps have continually been brought to court. Some people who live in these constantly redrawn districts say they are frustrated and looking for consistency.
“I have not had an opportunity to develop many personal relationships with my representatives,” Dennis Burns said. “Because by the time I develop a relationship, they're changed again.”
Burns has lived in his house in Wake County for 25 years. He loves the neighborhood, but he says every couple of years, his district and representative change. Burns has been in six different state House districts, three state Senate districts and three congressional districts in the past 12 years. Under the new state House maps proposed this week, it appears he is once again in another new district.
“In my view, that's just not a very practical way of doing government,” Burns said.
Redistricting is supposed to happen every 10 years to keep up with population changes, but North Carolina is infamous for taking redistricting maps to court when different parties accuse each other of manipulating the lines for their benefit. That's called gerrymandering.
The new maps that came out Wednesday are the fifth in six years. Burns says the average citizen would have a hard time keeping up with the changes, and even as someone who is pretty well educated in civics, he struggles.
“I feel somewhat isolated. And that's the challenge. Will I have the same people next week? I don't know,” Burns said. “The only way you change an issue is if you care. So, and I would hope that that would be true.”
Now that new map proposals for state House, Senate and Congress have all been introduced, they are expected to move quickly through the legislative process. They could be approved as soon as next week. They are also likely once again to be challenged in court. Burns says he is hoping the districts will stabilize for a while after this year.
