NC GOP should drop effort to block 2017 election

A three-judge federal panel has delivered, to no one’s surprise, an expected order that North Carolina must push ahead with a special election in 2017. The election comes as a result of an earlier ruling ordering new legislative maps to be drawn by March 28 for new districts. Any districts that have to be altered to correct unconstitutional gerrymandering will have to hold special elections this year.

Republicans, who made this mess with their crazy quilt districts designed for the purpose of electing more Republicans — not fair representation — naturally will push on, going to the U.S. Supreme Court and dragging out the legal fight as long as they can (and on the public dime).

They’ll never admit, of course, that in drawing districts they were trying to put the fix in on elections to ensure their continued control on Jones Street, even it that meant packing some districts with African-American voters to weaken their impact in other districts.

They’ve lost in court, and in the 2017 elections, while they won’t change GOP control should Democrats win more seats in more fair districts, it’s possible that Republicans could lose their current veto-proof majority — which could create real problems for them if Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper started vetoing the next edition of their foolishness.

They’d do better to give up this ridiculous, wasteful fight and just move on with drawing new, and more fair, lines.

This story was originally published January 9, 2017 at 7:00 AM with the headline "NC GOP should drop effort to block 2017 election."