RALEIGH -- Mapmakers are proposing new districts for most members of the North Carolina House, a move forced after federal judges ruled state Republicans illegally gave too much emphasis to race in the current version of legislative voting lines.
The state House map released Saturday is the first made public ahead of a statewide public hearing Tuesday. State lawmakers are expected to finalize new House and Senate district lines the following week.
The senior chairman of the House redistricting committee says the proposed map would create two districts in which incumbent Republicans could go head-to-head and two in which an incumbent Democrat could face a sitting Republican lawmaker.
Republican Rep. David Lewis of Harnett County says four of the new districts have no current incumbent lawmakers living in them.