Democrats Challenge New House Map in North Carolina Amid Protest

Wed Oct 22 2025 04:35:18 GMT+0300 (Eastern European Summer Time)

As North Carolina Republicans seek to redraw the state's House map to gain an additional seat, Democrats rally and vow to fight back against alleged gerrymandering efforts initiated by the GOP at Trump's request.

Democratic officials and party members protested outside the North Carolina Capitol against the Republican-led proposal to redraw congressional districts, aimed at gaining an extra House seat. Despite acknowledging the short-term inability to stop the map, they are determined to fight against the plan in future elections as they claim it targets Democratic Rep. Don Davis. The redistricting is linked to Trump's calls for mid-decade restructuring, and allegations of racial gerrymandering are likely to spark legal challenges.

RALEIGH, N.C. — Democrats rallied Tuesday against a new U.S. House map proposed by North Carolina Republicans, responding to efforts that they argue would grant the GOP yet another seat at President Donald Trump’s behest. While Democrats realize that they will likely be unable to block the redraw for now, they pledged to fight the plan in the long run.

The proposed map by Republican leaders aims to undermine the reelection of Democratic Rep. Don Davis, one of three Black representatives in North Carolina, by redrawing two of the state’s congressional districts. Current election data indicates that this could allow Republicans to secure 11 out of 14 House seats, an increase from 10.

In response to Trump's directive for Republican-led states to conduct mid-decade redistricting, which aims to strengthen the GOP's position in Congress for the 2026 midterm elections, the Democrats find themselves in a challenging position. They need to gain three additional seats to take control of the House and historically, the president’s party tends to lose seats during midterms.

With Republicans holding a majority in both chambers of the General Assembly and state law preventing Democratic Gov. Josh Stein from vetoing redistricting proposals, the GOP's new map appears set for enactment following final votes in the House as soon as Wednesday. The party-line approval also came from the state Senate earlier Tuesday.

Democratic officials gathered outside the old state Capitol, with about 300 protesters, vowed that the redistricting would have negative repercussions for the GOP at the polls in coming years. They indicated that litigation would be forthcoming to challenge the enactment on the basis of alleged unlawful racial gerrymandering.

We know we may not have the ability to stop the Republicans in Raleigh right now ... but we are here to show that people across this state and across this nation are watching them, stated Anderson Clayton, chair of the North Carolina Democratic Party.

The gathering symbolized a substantial effort from Democrats to criticize state Republicans whom they accuse of bending to Trump’s will through the alleged corrupt reshaping of district lines.

Defending their actions, state GOP leaders highlighted Trump's narrow victories in North Carolina’s electoral votes during previous presidential elections, positing that more Republican representation in Congress is warranted.

This skirmish in the national redistricting battle began when Trump encouraged Republican-led Texas to modify its congressional districts. Following Texas's changes, California Democrats also approved their own redistricting plan, pending voter ratification in November.

According to Republicans, Democratic-leaning states have disproportionately shaped their congressional maps well before this current national redistricting contention.

“It is incumbent upon us to react to this environment,” said state Sen. Ralph Hise, the principal author of the map. We must respond and ensure that blue-state tactics do not dominate Congress.