NC House Rejects NC Senate's Rejiggering of Greensboro City Council

Sen. Trudy Wade's attempt to redistrict the Greensboro city council so that Republicans can win elections there has been soundly defeated in the NC House ... 35-73.

Wade first sent the redistricting proposal to the House in Senate Bill 36 [reports WRAL]. When the House refused to take up that bill, Wade sent it over again, this time attached to House Bill 263, a redistricting proposal for the small town of Trinity.

The bill would eliminate the city's at-large districts, quadruple-bunk four incumbents into a single district, and revoke the mayor's vote on the council.

The bill, though, is not now dead. It has to go to a conference with the Senate, where House Republicans from Guildford County promise to push for a citizen referendum, which would surely fail.

Feedback on Wade's scheme has been "about 40-1 negative, both Republican and Democrat. They don’t feel good about this bill," said Rep. Jon Hardister (R-Guilford). Said Rep. Ralph Johnson (D-Guilford), "The sponsor of this bill, she’s united Greensboro, both Democrats and Republicans. She’s done that, and I thank her for that."

Rep. John Blust (R-Guilford), the brother of Watauga County Commissioner David Blust, was the most passionate in his denunciation of Sen. Wade's motives: "You all know it is wrong for a city of 285,000 to have a form of government put in place by one person. One person did the design. One person insists that every detail of the plan must be preserved."

Greensboro News & Record coverage.