(The Center Square) – Congressional redistricting panels in North Carolina’s General Assembly have a new map ready for consideration and a portal for public comments open.
Earlier this week, chamber leaders Phil Berger in the Senate and Destin Hall in the House of Representatives said a redraw was coming primarily in response to California’s push through Proposition 50 and Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom.
New maps have already been signed into law in Missouri and Texas, and the Tarheel State is one of nine others in some level of engagement.
If enacted coupled with 2024 voting results with 73.3% turnout, the new plan would have no change in 12 of 14 districts – mostly west of Interstate 95. It is the 1st Congressional District and 3rd Congressional District that have change, the former won last year by incumbent Democratic Rep. Don Davis in the state’s only U.S. House race closer than 13%.
Davis turned back Republican Laurie Buckhout 49.5%-47.8%, winning by 6,307 votes of 376,324 cast.
In the 3rd, Democrats didn’t even make a run and Republican Rep. Dr. Greg Murphy defeated Libertarian challenger Gheorghe Cormos 77.4%-22.6% in a race drawing 320,841 votes.
Beaufort, Hyde, Dare, Craven, Pamlico and Carteret counties would change from the 3rd to the 1st; Wilson, Wayne, Greene and Lenoir would change from the 1stt to the 3rd.
Murphy got 113,673 votes in those six counties – Craven’s 36,964 being the most, followed by Carteret (34,816), Beaufort (18,726), Dare (15,962), Pamlico (5,581) and Hyde (1,624).
Buckhout (Wayne, Lenoir) and Davis (Wilson, Greene) each carried two of the four counties proposed to exit the 1st Congressional District, and Buckhout overall was ahead 64,633-60,882. The breakdowns Buckhout 29,195 in Wayne, 18,174 in Wilson, 13,236 in Lenoir and 4,028 in Greene; and Davis 23,186 in Wayne, 20,428 in Wilson, 13,118 in Lenoir and 4,150 in Greene.
The 3rd Congressional District would also have the counties of Pitt, Jones, Onslow, Duplin and the majority of Sampson. The 1st Congressional District would also have Currituck, Camden, Pasquotank, Perquimans, Gates, Chowan, Hertford, Northampton, Warren, Vance, a small piece of Granville, Halifax, Nash, Edgecombe, Martin, Bertie, Washington and Tyrrell.
Public comments can be made to the North Carolina Legislature website.
