Kevin Flanagan: GOP power grab for Wake County commissioners
Regarding the March 6 news article “Wake Dems blast local election bill” about Sen. Chad Barefoot’s Senate Bill 181 to redefine the manner in which Wake County commissioners are elected: This bill reeks of pure partisanship.
Seats that are countywide today would be split into districts and made subject to gerrymandering in the future. This is an attempt to suggest a fix for a problem that does not exist. In reality, it may well create a problem: gerrymandered districts for even county commissioners.
The bill also contains language to prevent reversal: “The structure of the Wake County Board of Commissioners shall not be altered under that Part or Session Law prior to the return of the 2020 Census.”
This is a transparent power grab. Had the board been all Republicans, I do not believe that Barefoot would be so motivated.
Kevin Flanagan
Raleigh
This story was originally published March 8, 2015 at 4:00 PM with the headline "Kevin Flanagan: GOP power grab for Wake County commissioners."