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North Carolina Map Opponents Ask US Supreme Court To Affirm
A North Carolina coalition of advocacy groups and Democratic voters want the US Supreme Court to rule the state's congressional maps unconstitutional. They say the Republican-drawn maps are too favorable to the GOP.
Common Cause, the League of Women Voters and others said they filed motions last week asking justices to affirm a January lower court decision striking down the current boundaries.
That court found the maps to be gerrymandered along partisan lines, giving Republicans an unfair edge.
But the three-judge panel's order to redraw the maps was immediately delayed by justices during an appeal. That decision left the 2016 boundaries in place for this year's elections.
North Carolina Judicial Remapping, Selection Discussions Resume
The North Carolina legislature has revived public discussion over redrawing judicial election districts and how judges are chosen after a three-month hiatus.
But it's unclear if the renewed conversation Friday in a House-Senate study committee will translate to approved legislation during the General Assembly work session that begins next month.
House Republicans began talking last June about overhauling election boundaries for Superior Court and District Court seats because of population disparities. Senators extended the debate last fall to include whether head-to-head judicial elections should be eliminated altogether.
"Moral Monday" Movement Turning 5 Years Old With Rally
An effort by North Carolina civil rights groups and citizens opposing Republican policies at the North Carolina General Assembly is returning to where it began five years ago.
Movement organizers planned a get-out-the-vote rally late Monday on state government's Halifax Mall in Raleigh.
The "Moral Monday" events took off in size and scope, ultimately leading to more than 1,000 arrests.
The Rev. William Barber led the movement as state NAACP president. Current president the Rev. T. Anthony Spearman says Monday's event — a week before the primary — will focus on issues like immigration, voting rights and environmental justice.
Renovation Work Continues At Wright Brothers Visitor Center
Renovations to the nearly 50-year-old visitor center at the Wright Brothers National Memorial in the Outer Banks could be done by fall.
The Virginian-Pilot reports that the renovation at the memorial to the pioneers of flight could be finished by late 2018 after some delays. The building in Kill Devil Hills is listed as a National Historic Landmark.
The center, which is nearly 10,000 square feet, closed in 2016 for upgrades and modernization of exhibits. It was expected to reopen by the spring.
Lemur Facility In North Carolina Announces 2 Healthy Infants
Duke University has announced that two lemurs were born in recent weeks at its facility dedicated to the study and care of the endangered mammals.
The Duke Lemur Center said the two infants born separately in March are blue-eyed black lemurs, among the most endangered type of lemurs. The lemurs are named Hamill and Gellar in honor of actor Mark Hamill and actress Sarah Michelle Gellar.
The center said that the births help increase genetic diversity among a safety net of captive lemurs outside of their habitat in Madagascar.