Common Cause v. Lewis
The NRF supported a group of individual voters and organizational plaintiff, Common Cause, in a partisan gerrymandering lawsuit against the state of North Carolina and other relevant state actors. The suit alleged that North Carolina’s 2017 redistricting plan for both chambers of the General Assembly are partisan gerrymanders in violation of the North Carolina Constitution. The lawsuit sought to establish new state House and state Senate maps that do not burden or penalize any party or voter based on their political beliefs.
After a nine-day trial, the Wake County Superior Court struck down the maps as unconstitutional, enjoined their use in future elections, and ordered the legislature to redraw compliant maps. Following the North Carolina General Assembly’s submission of the remedial maps, the NRF-supported plaintiffs sought an expedited appeal to challenge the still-gerrymandered plans. The North Carolina Supreme Court declined to expedite the appeal, and the legislature’s remedial maps were used for the 2020 elections.
Ensure Every Voice Counts
The National Redistricting Foundation works to advance fair representation, so voters—not political interests—shape our democracy.
