After numerous discussions and lawsuits that have reached the highest court in America, the N.C. General Assembly has a bipartisan group of legislators seeking a new way to redraw the state’s Congressional and legislative districts.
Chatham Democratic Rep. Robert Reives II is among the four main sponsors of House Bill 69, a piece of legislation that would establish an 11-member “Nonpartisan Redistricting Commission” and make political and racial gerrymandering illegal under state law.
The bill was presented during a press conference Feb. 13, as Reives was joined by Republican Reps. Chuck McGrady of Henderson and Jon Hardister of Guilford and Democratic Rep. Brian Turner of Buncombe. In a press release from Common Cause NC, a group that has long supported redistricting reform, McGrady said his fellow Republicans had lobbied for this kind of change when they were in the minority prior to 2011.
“Supporting redistricting reform was right when we were in the minority, and it’s still right now,” McGrady said. “We are here to serve the people of North Carolina and we must make sure they can have full confidence in the integrity and fairness of our elections.”
Reives added, “This bill will ensure that all North Carolina voters have a voice in choosing their representatives. It will increase public confidence in our government and strengthen our democracy.”
The Commission, as established under the legislation, would gather U.S. Census data and convene “21 public hearings throughout the state before submitting a proposed plan” and “provide an opportunity for racial and language minorities to participate in the public hearings.” Also included in the bill are a list of demographics that can’t be used in making maps: registered voters’ political affiliation, previous election results, demographic information other than population and the location of incumbents’ residences, except when required by federal law.
The board would be made up of four members each from the top two political parties by voter registration and three members not from those parties, either affiliated with another or unaffiliated.
Speaking to the News + Record on Feb. 14, Reives said he and other supporters of the bill feel like there are enough Republicans in the House that, if joined with Democrats, will get the legislation passed. As of Friday, six Republicans had signed on as co-sponsors.
“It really comes down to whether House leadership wants a vote on this,” he said.
Legislative leaders have shown willingness in the past to consider similar legislation. Senate Leader Phil Berger (R-Rockingham) co-sponsored Senate Bill 25, which had chunks of the same language, in 2009. The House version of that bill, HB252, was co-sponsored by current House Speaker Tim Moore (R-Cleveland). Neither bill got a vote in a committee or on the floor of the General Assembly.
Reives said he would still support this kind of legislation even if the Democrats were in the majority, citing the technology the party in power has at its fingertips to draw favorable districts.
“Somebody’s going to have to make a sacrifice to get this done,” he said. “Both parties have shown themselves to be irresponsible with this authority, especially with the tools that we have today. With those kind of tools, you can’t leave these things in legislators’ hands.”
So far, at the very least, some Republicans have shown willingness to get on board with the proposal.
“This is something that should be done regardless of which party is in power,” Hardister said in a press release. “We always need to find ways to make government better. This would help to make that happen.”