Editorial: With Thursday's meeting, let gerrymandering reform begin!

Thursday, Oct. 24, 2019 -- Thursday's state House committee meeting must mark the acceleration of work to make the election of our state legislators and members of the U.S. House free of racial and ultra-partisan prejudice and gerrymandering. ALL North Carolinians deserve and must have a voice in their government.

Posted 9:00 a.m. Oct 24, 2019 — Updated 12:19 p.m. Oct 27, 2019

CBC Editorial: Thursday, Oct. 24, 2019; Editorial #8475

The following is the opinion of Capitol Broadcasting Company.

Thursday morning in room 643 of the state Legislative Office Building, there was a small but historic first step toward making the North Carolina General Assembly – and the state’s congressional delegation – more reflective of the population they represent.

The House Committee on Redistricting discussed three bills that would provide for, in varying degrees, a non-partisan system for developing legislative and congressional election district lines. You find a video of the session via a WRAL.com video stream available here.

Those bills are:

House Bill 69: Non Partisan Redistricting Commission -- The bill has 65 sponsors – a majority of the 120-member House.

House Bill 140: The FAIR Act -- The bill has 64 sponsors – also a majority of the House.

House Bill 648 – The N.C. FAIR State & Congressional Districts Act -- The bill has 25 sponsors.

It was the first time since 2011 the issue has had an official airing in the legislature and only the second time that those most intimately involved in the issue have been able to unearth.

We are not so deluded as to believe that anything of significance will immediately emerge from the committee. The committee’s leaders have made it clear there will be no comments from the public and no votes. The resistance to act however, is out of step with the will of voters.

Thursday, Oct. 24, 2019 -- Capitol Broadcasting Company's editorial cartoonist.

Support for a nonpartisan redistricting system is overwhelming and bipartisan. Just last week Public Policy Polling reported 62% of the state’s voters want it and only 9% are opposed. The support comes from across the political spectrum: Democrats (69% for; 5% against), independents (68% for; 9% against), and Republicans (49% for; 15% against) alike.

For much of the last decade discussion has been confined to backroom political mapmakers and courtrooms where the legality of the legislature’s past actions on redistricting have been derided as hyper-racial and ultra-partisan gerrymandering. Judges routinely ruled the plans illegal and demanded change.

The constant election district changes have left too many voters confused and detached from those who are supposed to represent them.

Of the three bills the committee discussed, House Bill 69 -- Nonpartisan Redistricting Commission, offers the best starting point. It calls for the non-partisan process. It covers three areas critical to successful development of a workable non-partisan system for developing legislative and congressional districts.

Maps will be developed with NO legislative involvement: The independent commission would develop the legislative and congressional district maps and submit them to the General Assembly for an up-or-down vote. No substantive amendments would be permitted. If a plan didn’t pass, the commission would be directed to submit a new one.
Public input from the outset and throughout the process: No fewer than three public hearings are required before the maps are developed. At least two public hearings are required when the plans are considered by the legislature.
Process transparency: All data and methods used to develop any of the plans must be available to the public BEFORE the plans are introduced for consideration by the legislature.

Millions of dollars that could have been used to far more beneficial purposes, have been spent to expose and thwart the efforts of partisan zealots.

The evidence is overwhelming of the need to adopt a non-partisan system to develop election districts.

Thursday’s committee meeting must mark the acceleration of work to make the election of our state legislators and members of the U.S. House free of racial and ultra-partisan prejudice. ALL North Carolinians deserve and must have a voice in their government.

NOTE: An earlier version of this editorial incorrectly stated that House Bill 69 included a provision for an amendment to the State Constitution, adopted by a statewide vote, for a non-partisan commission. That provision is in House Bill 140.

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