A new redistricting map in North Carolina is expected to clear the way for a red wave in U.S. House races in the state, The Hill is reporting.
The news outlet said the new map all but guarantees major Republican victories in the House races even as Democrats fight to regain control of the chamber. The redistricting map was approved by Republican lawmakers in the state legislature in October. It opens the door for the GOP to pick up at least three seats and possibly four in the state's 14-member delegation.
If the anticipated electoral bloodbath materializes, it would double the Republicans' slim House majority if everything else stays the same.
The Hill noted the new map pushed more Democrat voters into some blue districts. However, it cuts up several other districts so that Republican voters outnumber Democrats – giving incumbent Democrats just a slim chance.
Three Democrat lawmakers — Reps. Kathy Manning, Jeff Jackson and Wiley Nickel have all said they will retire at the end of the current term. And Democrat Rep. Don Davis is facing a toss-up run for reelection.
"There is no question that the way they have drawn these maps, they've made it impossible for three of us Democrats to win our seats again," Manning said.
Republicans, who are now in control of the state Supreme Court, revisited an earlier case last year and empowered Republican legislators to put the new map into effect for 2024.
"The outcomes of all of these elections are basically being decided in advance by the state legislature that drew the map," said Jackson.
Jackson announced a 2024 bid for state attorney general in October, one day after the Republican-controlled legislature approved the new congressional map for the state that would have situated him in a heavily GOP district, the Associated Press noted.
Jackson, a former local prosecutor, ex-state senator, Afghan war veteran and National Guard soldier, had in 2022 won an open U.S. House seat in a district in and around Charlotte that favored a Democrat. It was clear since he took office in January that Republicans could attempt to create new lines to push him out after only one term.
"A group of politicians in North Carolina just redrew my congressional district to take me out. They're going to replace me with one of their political allies," Jackson said.
But North Carolina House Speaker Tim Moore, a Republican, said the court "ensured that our constitution and the will of the people of North Carolina are honored."