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RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — The Latest on the North Carolina General Assembly redrawing the state’s congressional map (all times local):
4:50 p.m.
The plaintiffs in a lawsuit challenging North Carolina’s congressional district map will fight a replacement map approved by the Republican-controlled General Assembly.
A spokesman for a Democratic group bankrolling the September lawsuit said Friday voters would immediately go to court to try to block the newest boundaries for the 2020 elections finalized earlier in the day.
The new map configuration would threaten reelection hopes of two current Republican House members, but Democrats say that’s not good enough. Former Attorney General Eric Holder leads the National Democratic Redistricting Committee, whose affiliate is backing the lawsuit. Holder says the remedial map “simply replaces one partisan gerrymander with a new one.”
Republican lawmakers say the map was produced fairly and with neither partisan nor racial data.
Resolution would be needed soon to keep the congressional election schedule on time. Candidate filing is supposed to begin in a few weeks.
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3:30 p.m.
North Carolina’s congressional map has been redrawn with district lines that endanger reelection prospects for two Republicans next year.
The GOP-controlled General Assembly finalized the replacement boundaries Friday with a party-line vote in the state Senate. The map already cleared the state House on Thursday.
The legislature redrew the map because state judges blocked the use of the most recent lines for the 2020 elections. The judges determined those boundaries were likely drawn with unlawful partisan bias favoring Republicans, who currently hold 10 of North Carolina’s 13 U.S. House seats.
Replacement districts where Republican Reps. Mark Walker and George Holding now live would clearly favor Democratic candidates.
Some Democrats argue an 8-5 seat split favoring Republicans isn’t good enough and suggested more litigation is
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