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Yes, Mel Watt's 12th district was created in 1990 as one of two "black-majority" districts in NC (the other being the 1st, in Northeast NC). It originally WAS ridiculous, encompassing essentially every black neighborhood from Durham to Charlotte. It was challenged and changed to make it not QUITE so "long and thin". In the redistricting after 2000, it changed a little more but was still clearly drawn to encompass minority neighborhoods from the Triad to Charlotte.
However, after 2010 when the GOP drew the maps currently in use, they RETAINED district 12 in a similar shape to what it was after 2000! They can point to that as "Democratic gerrymandering gone wild", but why didn't they get rid of tit when they could have?
Answer: it HELPS Republicans to cram all of the Democrats into a few districts, as we saw with what they did not only with NC12 and NC1 but also NC4, David Price's district that used to be very Triangle-centered, and was redrawn to snake down into the poor sections of Fayetteville to pull those voters from the now-Redder districts around Fayetteville. Meanwhile, wealthier suburban (Republican-leaning) places in the Triangle got put into NC 6, 2, or 13, strengthening those as Republican majorities.
So when Republicans point to District 12 as a "Democratic gerrymander" that is supposed to invalidate the complaints against the 2010 gerrymandering, it's absurd. They took that concept much farther and created much MORE solid-Blue districts in order to make all of the other ones Redder, which is how we ended up with over 50% of Congressional votes going to Democrats and yet our Congressional representation currently standing at 10R-3D! Even at the "worst" of Democratic gerrymandering, it was 7D-6R which actually approximates the ratio of registered Rs and Ds in the state.
Thank you, Francois for the gerrymandering history lesson! I'm sure there is a state agency or a company out there, that could re-draw patisan-free districts, but I'm not sure either party would be interested in seeing that happen.
Oh no! Now we have to be competitive in every district! Oh, the horror!
Thank you, Francois for the gerrymandering history lesson! is there is a state agency or a company out there, that could re-draw patisan-free districts, I'm sure but I'm not sure either party would be interested in seeing that happen.
Oh no! Now we have to be competitive in every district! Oh, the horror!
Is there anything wrong with the county borders determining the voting district. No redrawing necessary or is that too simple?
We already have,
County sheriffs
County schools
County courts
County building dept
Everything is county except for who gets to vote for who. Or better yet who doesn't get to vote.
Location: northern Vermont - previously NM, WA, & MA
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I have to say, I'm genuinely sorry that NC is going through this. My mother lives in Wilmington. I spoke to her on the phone tonight, and she was going on at length of how much damage to the state's reputation is being done, and I know that NC deserves a lot better. I could sense an emotional tone in her voice, like she was hurt. This is unsettling to me. As a gay man, I'm not going to boycott the state; I mean come on....my mother lives there!
I can't believe these a**hat politicians in Raleigh are letting each day pass doing more damage to the state's reputation. How much longer is this clown show going to go on for? I just hope this awakens the voters to get out to the polls in November. I have plans to come around there for the holiday season. I really hope this story is put to rest by then along with a very decisive voter turnout. I'll keep the faith for NC.
I guess at this point that North Carolina has ceded its "Leader of the New South" role to Georgia ...not that Georgia is any prize. Now, North Carolina is in the running for the "Most likely to be Mistaken for Mississippi Award".
I've been thinking about this. Do you think rural Georgia is going to do the same thing, rise up and try force regressive laws down Atlanta's throat?
I have to say, I'm genuinely sorry that NC is going through this. My mother lives in Wilmington. I spoke to her on the phone tonight, and she was going on at length of how much damage to the state's reputation is being done, and I know that NC deserves a lot better. I could sense an emotional tone in her voice, like she was hurt. This is unsettling to me. As a gay man, I'm not going to boycott the state; I mean come on....my mother lives there!
I can't believe these a**hat politicians in Raleigh are letting each day pass doing more damage to the state's reputation. How much longer is this clown show going to go on for? I just hope this awakens the voters to get out to the polls in November. I have plans to come around there for the holiday season. I really hope this story is put to rest by then along with a very decisive voter turnout. I'll keep the faith for NC.
Looks encouraging for now, but there's a lot of time between now and November, and it will be a painfully tense wait.
Dems have no chance of winning back the GA unless republican turnout is just abysmal. Their only hope is to win statewide by a decent amount, get rid of the supermajorities in the GA, get all the statewide seats and get the governor's veto to stop the bleeding, and then win a majority on the state supreme court--which would give us a way to get out of our gerrymandered electoral prison.
Also winning the presidency again will be crucial because overturning Veith v Jubilerer 2004 may need to occur, to establish that partisan gerrymandering is unconstitutional nationwide.
It is tough to see this beautiful state being defiled. But hang in there. HB2 is the best present the state could've possibly given democrats for November.
That's debatable. Their government is less bad currently, and Virginia has voted more democratic in recent presidential elections, but the democrats that NC has are more progressive. Bernie Sanders put in by far his best showing in the south in NC, for instance.
There are interesting demographic forces at work in NC. The polarization between young and old voters is higher than almost any other state. Because of this, the effect of getting good vs bad youth turnout is like comparing the 2004 and 2008 elections here, (or the 2010 and 2014 midterms vs 2012). Youth turnout has an exaggerated effect. Hence why the general assembly has tried to suppress that voting demographic.
As someone who grew up in southeastern Virginia and is now residing in Northern Virginia I would agree. I think Virginia is a similar situation that North Carolina is in. Northern Virginia is solidly democrat and is basically just a suburb of DC. Charlottesville is a liberal college town in the mountains, kind of similar to your Asheville. Richmond is liberal downtown, but the burbs are conservative. My hometown of Hampton Roads - blue collar military and conservative. The small college educated and more liberal leaning people I found growing up kind of kept their mouths shut and tried not to draw too much attention. Most of the rest of the state is similar to rural NC state. If anything growing up, I thought of North Carolina, with Raleigh, Charlotte, and Asheville, as more progressive. The only thing that keeps Virginia from being in the situation that you are is NoVa. There are too many highly educated people from all over the country and world, too many tech companies that make the area an economic powerhouse. If ignorant, bigoted hicks tried the same thing in Virginia there's enough votes and power that they would be squashed flat.
As someone who grew up in southeastern Virginia and is now residing in Northern Virginia I would agree. I think Virginia is a similar situation that North Carolina is in. Northern Virginia is solidly democrat and is basically just a suburb of DC. Charlottesville is a liberal college town in the mountains, kind of similar to your Asheville. Richmond is liberal downtown, but the burbs are conservative. My hometown of Hampton Roads - blue collar military and conservative. The small college educated and more liberal leaning people I found growing up kind of kept their mouths shut and tried not to draw too much attention. Most of the rest of the state is similar to rural NC state. If anything growing up, I thought of North Carolina, with Raleigh, Charlotte, and Asheville, as more progressive. The only thing that keeps Virginia from being in the situation that you are is NoVa. There are too many highly educated people from all over the country and world, too many tech companies that make the area an economic powerhouse. If ignorant, bigoted hicks tried the same thing in Virginia there's enough votes and power that they would be squashed flat.
NC's population is about 66% urban. VA's population is 75% urban.
I'm pretty jealous that you guys have NoVA up there. That's where the difference is coming from. I can only hope that our major cities get large enough to turn the tables in the next decade. Which... could happen. You can see that our government is doing everything it can to scare new people away, because they know that could happen.
NC is definitely a battleground, and it's hard to tell which way it's going to go..
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I'm sure there is a state agency or a company out there, that could re-draw patisan-free districts, but I'm not sure either party would be interested in seeing that happen. 
