North Carolina Congressional Partisan Gerrymandering (Harper I)

Lawsuit filed on behalf of individual voters challenging North Carolina’s congressional map enacted in 2016 as an improper partisan gerrymander that entrenches Republican power by giving them 10 out of 13 congressional seats. The court issued a preliminary injunction, stating that the state could not proceed with the U.S. House primary elections under the original congressional map because it was a Republican partisan gerrymander. Legislators redrew the congressional map and the state court upheld it in time for candidates to file for the 2020 elections.

Given that the case was not closed following the 2020 elections, the plaintiffs submitted a motion to file a supplemental complaint in order to challenge the congressional map passed following the release of 2020 census data, similarly arguing the map is an extreme partisan gerrymander that entrenches Republican power. When the court did not act quickly on the motion, the plaintiffs filed a new case arguing substantially similar claims. The plaintiffs then voluntarily dismissed this case.

Last updated: December 6, 2021 12:44 pm EST