Supreme Court ruling delays North Carolina’s primary elections

(The Center Square) – A North Carolina Supreme Court ruling in response to a challenge to the state’s redistricting maps will delay next spring’s primary elections.

The high court ordered candidate filings for the primary elections be suspended and the elections moved from March 8 to May 17. Any candidate who already has filed to run and whose filing was accepted by the North Carolina State Board of Elections will not need to refile for the May primary unless another court ruling changes the candidate’s eligibility, the court said.

Two lawsuits have challenged the new legislative maps, which were passed last month in the Republican-controlled General Assembly. Both lawsuits claim the maps are unconstitutional because of gerrymandering.

Superior Court judges declined a request last week to delay the 2022 primaries, but the North Carolina Court of Appeals reversed that decision Monday and stopped candidate filings, which were to begin Monday. A subsequent appeal reversed that decision and led to Wednesday’s Supreme Court ruling.

“[Wednesday’s] order by the state Supreme Court restores faith in the rule of law and it is necessary for the Court to rule on the constitutionality of these unfair districts before the next election,” Gov. Roy Cooper said in a statement.

Senate Republicans said the Supreme Court “rejected the most transparent redistricting process in history without so much as an explanation” and characterized the decision as “secretive” and baseless.

“The court didn’t even articulate a legal or factual basis for suspending elections,” Sen. Ralph Hise, R-Mitchell, said in a statement. “The Democrats on the Supreme Court want districts that elect more Democrats, so they’re blocking every election in the state until they get their way.”

The North Carolina Supreme Court gave the trial court until Jan. 11 to reach a ruling on the lawsuits.

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