Caucus: Setting Boundaries

Setting Boundaries

Last night, after clearing the gallery of protesters shouting “Cheaters!,” the N.C. Senate advanced a new congressional map that seeks to turn the state’s one swing seat red. The legislation heads to a final, procedural vote today before the House takes it up, and a final vote is expected by Wednesday morning. Gov. Josh Stein cannot veto it. 

Assuming it passes and courts don’t intervene, the state’s 2020, 2022, 2024, and 2026 congressional contests will have taken place under different maps.

During a committee meeting on Monday morning, Sen. Ralph Hise, the map’s creator, was asked if he thought any of the 14 districts were competitive. 

“Wherever you set the standards at competitive—if it’s at 56, 57 percent—does that make it a competitive district?” Hise replied. “Then the answer is up to 11 districts that are competitive within the system.” 

Hise was suggesting that, while the three urban Democratic districts are overwhelmingly blue—a tactic known as “packing”—the 11 GOP districts will be relatively close races, because candidates don’t usually get more than 57 percent of the vote. 

That’s not quite accurate: Trump would have earned at least 58 percent of the vote in three of the 11 GOP-leaning districts in 2024, had they been in place at the time.

But Hise’s answer also undersells this reality: Absent a political earthquake, none of the new districts will be competitive. 

I looked at what kind of earthquake could make that happen. The short version: Democrats would need a whole lot of Mark Robinson-esque implosions.

— Jeffrey Billman

Thanks for reading The Caucus, a politics newsletter anchored by Bryan Anderson. Reach us with tips or ideas at politics@theassemblync.com.

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A Flag the Size of a Basketball Court Divides Greenville

The American flag that catapulted Greenville into national news is hard to miss.

It’s 40 feet tall, 80 feet long, and the pole that holds it up is 130 feet tall. Standing outside a Camping World recreational vehicle dealership, the flag audibly flaps in the wind and can be seen from blocks away.

It’s also about 15 times bigger than Greenville’s local ordinances allow. That the dispute divided the town is perhaps unsurprising in this national political moment.

“You have a group of people that say you shouldn’t restrict the American flag,” said Henry Hinton, who hosts a popular local radio show with a conservative fanbase. “And then you have a group of people who say this guy’s a CEO of a major national company—a billionaire who is taunting us by telling the city council that he is not going to adhere to the rules that everyone else has to adhere to.”

Last month, the General Assembly passed H.B. 926, which restricts cities and counties from regulating the size of official government flags flown on private property. Greenville officials had to admit defeat.

— Eleazar Yisrael

In Siler City, Fear of ICE Hangs Over Latino Community

President Donald Trump promised a wide-scale crackdown on illegal immigration in his second term and has largely followed through with raids on workplaces and a massive expansion of new federal detention centers. 

His actions have alarmed many of North Carolina’s 1.1 million Latino residents, especially in the majority-Latino town of Siler City. The Chatham County nonprofit El Vínculo Hispano canceled its annual Hispanic Heritage Fiesta this year. Last year, the event drew 5,000 people.

Travis Patterson, a member of the Siler City Board of Commissioners who also works for local nonprofit Communities in Schools, said he noticed absences among Latino students at Jordan-Matthews High School after Trump was reelected. “Students were not coming to school for fear that they would be approached by ICE,” Patterson said.

— Sara Heise Graybeal

Around the State: Durham’s Second No Kings Rally Draws Thousands (INDY). Fayetteville joins nationwide ‘No Kings’ protest against authoritarianism (CityView). Did campaign money make a difference in Fayetteville’s mayoral primary? (CityView). At ‘No Kings’ Protest, Scotland County Residents Push Back Against Trump’s Policies (Border Belt Independent).

Let us know what’s on your radar at politics@theassemblync.com.