Ignoring them sure seems like an option. Tell me again what happens if the GOP ignores the judges? They start forming a committee to draw new maps? Maps that will be challenged in courts for years?
A referee is being appointed and if delays are attempted has the authority to so declare and to just create a new map themself.
And if that map gets tangled in litigation?
My question is “when the map get tangled in litigation?”
ETA: btw, this was a NC state court, right?
I don’t know if there is much chance of this getting tangled up in litigation. There was a recent SCOTUS ruling that said Federal Courts can’t get involved in gerrymandering cases, if I understood correctly. That pretty much leaves it to the state courts. I don’t really see who the GOPers would have to appeal the maps to after this ruling.
I of course could have misunderstood these rulings but that was my impression.
I’m not an attorney, but it seems to me that the crucial matter is, what is the default map?
The court has summarily rejected the 2017 map. If the NC GOP draws a shitty partisan map, they’re violating a court order. The court will then draw their own map and declare it the official map.
The GOP will challenge that map — but it will be the default map. Until the challenge is resolved, that’s the map that will be used.
It’s almost exactly the same situation we’ve been in since like 2011, with the GOP drawing illegitimate maps that get challenged, except that instead of us voting under the challenged GOP map, we’ll be voting under the challenged court map.
I can’t guarantee that’s how it’ll go down, but that’s my best understanding.
Oh–and our state supreme court is overwhelmingly Democratic, due to some serious fuckups by the GOP. They changed the courts elections to partisan elections, thinking that’d benefit them. A Democrat changed his affiliation to run as a Republican, splitting their vote and ruining their chances. That, and a series of other events of varying hilarity, have resulted in our having a 6-1 Democratic majority on the court.
Any appeal they make will go only to the state supreme court, and won’t be looked at favorably there.
Excellent couple of posts, LHOD; thanks for the clarification.
No problem! It’s really great to have some good news to report from our state for a change :).
The AP has a story about the special election: NC election tests Trump clout, suburban flight from GOP.
The GOP seems to agree, since they’re pouring money into the contest:
Can I call it, or can I call it?
I don’t know whether the court will allow this method.
Oh, shit. I totally misread that post. My bad. I was thinking (despite quoting words to the contrary) that the 1,000 maps were from the dead Republican partisan who designed the gerrymander. That’s completely the opposite of the truth: instead, those 1,000 maps were designed by an expert hired by the people challenging the gerrymandering.
On the one hand, I apologize if I gave the wrong impression. On the other hand, reviewing what I quoted, the plain meaning of those quoted words is so clear that I hope I’m the only one who misread them so badly.
Here’s a more complete article. It also includes a quote from Dan Blue, who’s volunteering himself to demonstrate that NC Democrats have some real shitbirds in their ranks as well. (Fortunately he’s getting called out as a shitbird by so many Democrats that he’s backpedaling like crazy).
I had to read it twice to make sure they weren’t talking about the dead guy.
I am wondering, after reading some more comments:
- Whether the staffers reviewing the 1,000 maps will do so in view of the public; and
- If they don’t, whether the court will find them in violation of the order.
Having read most of the courts decision I am under the impression that anyone who fails to follow their order TO. THE. LETTER. will find their map tossed out and a court imposed map put in place.
They seemed to be in a mood.
I am so furious right now.
About two months ago, the NC General Assembly (NCGA) submitted a totally unacceptable budget to the governor. He vetoed it, and because the Republicans lack a supermajority, his veto was sure to stand on the override vote.
So Republicans didn’t hold it.
For two months, they’ve refused to vote on overriding the veto, because they knew they’d lose. They tried all sorts of tricks to peel off Democrats from sustaining the veto, but they couldn’t get enough. One Democrat was showing up day after day after chemotherapy sessions to make sure she could sustain the vote. Another was rescheduling his army reserve duty to make sure he could be there.
Which brings us to today.
Republicans said there wouldn’t be a vote today, so that members could go to 9/11 remembrance ceremonies. Most Democrats left to go to ceremonies this morning, or were otherwise not present, in order to conduct other business.
Speaker of the House Tim Moore apparently told Republicans to hang back; and when there were only 9 Democrats left in the chamber, held an override vote. The vote succeeded 55-9.
The state Senate will be voting this afternoon. In theory.
I know they’ve had a lot of lows, but this is a new low for them, using respect for 9/11 to circumvent democracy.
Wow. That’s low.
The Democratic House members should have been prepared for this, though. This is an all-out (political) knife fight, and the only rules are what can be gotten away with. Everyone needs to be ready for this kind of awful stuff.
Yeah, this is obviously completely despicable assuming the facts are as reported.
But how useless is the Democratic party? The NC-GOP is seven battles into the cold civil war and the NC-Dems have barely figured out there’s a war on.
I am totally unsurprised by this maneuver.
Assuming the NC Senate D’s went to the 9/11 ceremonies, couldn’t they make it back by the afternoon? (assuming the ceremonies are local)