{"id":2863,"date":"2025-10-20T07:48:51","date_gmt":"2025-10-20T11:48:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.commoncause.org\/north-carolina\/?post_type=press&p=2863"},"modified":"2025-10-20T07:50:12","modified_gmt":"2025-10-20T11:50:12","slug":"clayton-butterfield","status":"publish","type":"press","link":"https:\/\/www.commoncause.org\/north-carolina\/press\/clayton-butterfield\/","title":{"rendered":"Former Congress members Clayton and Butterfield speak out against legislature’s attempt to dismantle congressional district in historic ‘Black Belt’ region of North Carolina, call new maps ‘a moral regression’"},"template":"","class_list":["post-2863","press","type-press","status-publish","hentry","press_type-press-release"],"acf":{"details":{"summary":"","featured_image":"","press_type":146,"authors":"","related_issues":false,"related_work":false,"location":36},"sidebar":{"helper_enable_sidebar":false,"helper_media_contact":{"heading":"Media Contact","manually_enter_person":false,"person":"","name":"","role":"","phone":"","email":""},"helper_links_downloads":{"heading":"Links & Downloads","links":null}},"page_layout":[{"acf_fc_layout":"layout_wysiwyg","_acfe_flexible_toggle":"","component_wysiwyg":{"content":"

In a joint statement to legislative leaders, former U.S. Reps. Clayton and Butterfield, who both represented Congressional District 1, powerfully voice their opposition to the newest attempt by GOP politicians to impose a discriminatory gerrymander on Black voters in northeastern NC<\/b><\/h4>\r\nRALEIGH, NC \u2013 North Carolina Republicans this week are attempting to further gerrymander and dismantle Congressional District 1 in the historic Black Belt region of northeastern North Carolina, severely undermining the voting power of residents there.\r\n\r\nTwo former members of Congress who represented that district are speaking out against the legislature\u2019s newest discriminatory gerrymandering scheme.\r\n\r\nFormer Congresswoman Eva Clayton<\/strong> was the first African American woman to represent North Carolina in the U.S. House of Representatives. When Rep. Clayton won her election to Congressional District 1 in 1992, she became the state\u2019s first Black congressional representative since 1901. She represented District 1 until leaving office in January 2003.\r\n\r\nFormer Congressman G.K. Butterfield<\/strong> represented Congressional District 1 from 2004 through 2022. Rep. Butterfield also served as chair of the Congressional Black Caucus and he is a former justice of the NC Supreme Court.\r\n\r\nThe following is a joint statement from former Congresswoman Eva Clayton and former Congressman G.K. Butterfield:\u00a0<\/b>\r\n\r\n\u201cTo North Carolina citizens and lawmakers:\r\n\r\nFor more than 30 years, we collectively represented northeastern North Carolina\u2019s congressional district in a region known as the Black Belt of our state. For decades, it has stood as a beacon of fair representation \u2014 a district where Black voters, rural communities, and working families could make their voices heard in Washington, D.C.\r\n\r\nFrom the moment the district was reconstituted in the early 1990s, it has symbolized progress born of sacrifice and the hard work of generations who fought for equal access to the ballot box. We were proud to serve all <\/i>the people in this district and are now dismayed to see the legislative leadership\u2019s intent to dismantle it for pure partisan advantage.\r\n\r\nThe proposed congressional map would silence communities that have long been the backbone of northeastern North Carolina, fracturing counties and towns that share common bonds of history, economy, and hope. This is not merely a political act \u2014 it is a moral regression. It weakens the representation of Black North Carolinians and undermines the promise of equal voice and fair elections that so many have fought to secure.\r\n\r\nGerrymandering is wrong regardless of who is doing it. The map now proposed by the legislative leadership will take our state\u2019s only toss-up district and make it a solid Republican one \u2013 not through fair elections, but instead through political manipulation.\u00a0 Northeastern North Carolina will be carved up into two districts that produce representation not reflective of the region.\r\n\r\nWe strongly oppose the map. We are offended by the fact that the people of northeastern North Carolina affected by this change have not been given ample opportunity to provide their input. This is not how our democracy is supposed to work. And certainly, a map that produces an 11-3 advantage for one political party is not representative of what North Carolina is: a highly competitive battleground, \u201cpurple\u201d state.\r\n\r\nOur state deserves voting maps that reflect the deeply held values of North Carolinians: fairness, equality, and community \u2013 not cynical lines drawn by politicians to entrench their power and exclude participation.\r\n\r\nWe call on our state\u2019s leaders \u2014 and all North Carolinians \u2014 to reject this manipulation of our democracy. The strength of our state lies in inclusion, not division. The First Congressional District must continue to be a district where every citizen\u2019s voice counts equally.\r\n\r\nWe ask the legislature to focus on the priorities that matter \u2013 such as passing a state budget, as we are just one of four states in America that have failed to do so.\u00a0 Gerrymandering is not and should never be a priority \u2013 regardless of who is doing it.\r\n\r\nOverwhelmingly, North Carolina voters across all party lines oppose gerrymandering in all forms. If lawmakers fail to heed the public\u2019s will, it\u2019s time for the attention to be turned back to our appellate courts.\r\n\r\nOur districts don\u2019t belong to politicians; our districts belong to the people of North Carolina. And fair maps are the foundation of the people\u2019s right to free elections.\u201d\r\n\r\n
\r\n\r\nBob Phillips, Executive Director of the nonpartisan voting rights group Common Cause North Carolina<\/b>, applauded former Congresswoman Clayton and former Congressman Butterfield for their statement against the legislature\u2019s harmful gerrymander.\r\n\r\n\u201cWe thank Representatives Clayton and Butterfield for speaking powerfully on behalf of northeastern North Carolina, a region they represented for decades, and opposing the legislature\u2019s outrageous scheme to further silence the region\u2019s voters,\u201d Phillips said. \u201cThe people of northeastern North Carolina deserve a congressional district that reflects their communities and respects their right to have a voice in choosing their representative. What Republican legislative leaders are attempting with their latest discriminatory gerrymander is absolutely shameful and is politics at its worst.\u201d\r\n\r\nThe NC Senate Elections Committee is meeting to take up the newest gerrymandered map on Monday, Oct. 20, at 10:00 a.m.\r\n\r\nInformation about how North Carolinians can speak out against the legislature\u2019s discriminatory gerrymander can be found at ccnc.me\/cd1<\/b><\/a>."}},{"acf_fc_layout":"layout_add_component","_acfe_flexible_toggle":"","component_add_component":null},{"acf_fc_layout":"layout_work","_acfe_flexible_toggle":"","component_work":{"heading":"Work","manually_curate":false,"work":null}}]},"yoast_head":"\nFormer Congress members Clayton and Butterfield speak out against legislature's attempt to dismantle congressional district in historic 'Black Belt' region of North Carolina, call new maps 'a moral regression' - Common Cause North Carolina<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.commoncause.org\/north-carolina\/press\/clayton-butterfield\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Former Congress members Clayton and Butterfield speak out against legislature's attempt to dismantle congressional district in historic 'Black Belt' region of North Carolina, call new maps 'a moral regression'\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.commoncause.org\/north-carolina\/press\/clayton-butterfield\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Common Cause North Carolina\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-10-20T11:50:12+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.commoncause.org\/north-carolina\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/common-cause-share-image.png\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1200\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"630\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/png\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.commoncause.org\/north-carolina\/press\/clayton-butterfield\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.commoncause.org\/north-carolina\/press\/clayton-butterfield\/\",\"name\":\"Former Congress members Clayton and Butterfield speak out against legislature's attempt to dismantle congressional district in historic 'Black Belt' region of North Carolina, call new maps 'a moral regression' - 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