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For Immediate Release
November, 02 2018, 12:00am EDT
Contact:
Malik Russell, mrussell@naacpnet.org or Joy, media@naacpnc.org
NAACP Wins in NC Racial Gerrymandering Case
Legislature ordered to fix racial gerrymandering violation in next session
Raleigh
The North Carolina State Conference of the NAACP obtained yet another ruling that the North Carolina legislative map violates legal requirements. Today, a three-judge panel of the North Carolina General Court of Justice, Superior Court Division, ruled that four districts in the North Carolina House of Representatives (Districts 36, 37, 40 and 41) violate the prohibition in the North Carolina Constitution on mid-decade redistricting. The four districts in question were redrawn, along with several other North Carolina legislative districts, following a 2016 ruling by a federal court that several districts in the 2011 North Carolina legislative map constituted racial gerrymanders in violation of the U.S. Constitution's equal protection guarantee.
"This is an important victory for the NAACP as we fight to ensure that communities of color have a full opportunity to elect representatives who will protect their interests in state legislatures across the country" said Bradford M. Berry, NAACP General Counsel.
Following the remedial phase of the federal case, the North Carolina State Conference of the NAACP filed suit in state court arguing that redrawing Districts 36, 37, 40 and 41 was unnecessary to remedy the violations found by the federal court, and therefore unlawful under the North Carolina Constitution. Today, a three-judge panel of the North Carolina court agreed.
"From the time of Reconstruction and beforehand, opponents of a true democracy have attempted to silence and suppress Black political power, and each time we've stood strong and fought back - today is one of those times," said Rev. Dr. T. Anthony Spearman, NAACP North Carolina State President. "We are committed to this fight of making democracy real for all of us and stand ready to do battle against those who seek to shrink this ideal."
The North Carolina State NAACP partnered with the Southern Coalition for Social Justice on this legal victory.
Founded Feb. 12. 1909, the NAACP is the nation's oldest, largest and most widely recognized grassroots-based civil rights organization. Its more than half-million members and supporters throughout the United States and the world are the premier advocates for civil rights in their communities, conducting voter mobilization and monitoring equal opportunity in the public and private sectors.
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The poll shows the progressive congresswoman winning back voters who swung toward Trump in a hypothetical 2028 matchup with MAGA's potential heir apparent.
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As MAGA's popularity wanes, a new poll shows that progressive Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) is now slightly favored to win a hypothetical presidential election against Vice President JD Vance, a leading contender to be the heir apparent to President Donald Trump.
The survey of over 1,500 registered voters, published Tuesday by The Argument/Verasight, shows the Bronx congresswoman slightly edging out the vice president, 51% to 49%, within the margin of error.
While the 2028 presidential election is still nearly three years away, the poll suggests that Ocasio-Cortez, a self-described democratic socialist who some have dubbed too polarizing to represent the Democratic Party, may have more nationwide appeal than establishment politicians have claimed.
Neither Vance nor Ocasio-Cortez has formally declared their intent to run for the presidency. But as Trump's loyal vice president, Vance is considered by many to be his natural successor. However, the president has continued to vacillate on whether he’ll run for an unconstitutional third-term bid himself, and polls have consistently shown Vance to be even less than Trump.
Ocasio-Cortez, meanwhile, is one of the relatively few Democrats available to fill a wide-open progressive lane. While her credibility among some on the left was dinged substantially by her defenses of the unpopular former President Joe Biden last year, the core planks of her affordability-focused platform—especially Medicare for All—are more popular than ever in the age of Trumpian austerity. This is especially true among Democratic voters, who polls have shown increasingly view the party establishment as out of step with their priorities.
Following Trump's victory in 2024, which was propelled predominantly by fears about inflation under Biden, one of the most striking numbers was the 11% shift toward Trump in the Bronx from 2020.
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Where Trump dominated with non-college-educated voters, 56% to 42%, Ocasio-Cortez is virtually tied with Vance. Among Hispanic voters, who went against the Democratic VP in historic numbers to give Trump nearly half of their support, Ocasio-Cortez is shown to lead by an overwhelming 64% to 36% margin.
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The CBO estimates that the Republican bill, which stands no chance of passing the Senate even if it clears the House on Wednesday, would lower gross benchmark premiums by 11% on average between 2027 and 2035.
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