North Carolina

North Carolina lawmakers gear up for latest round of redistricting

Published

1 year ago

September 29, 2023

North Carolina lawmakers gear up for latest round of redistricting

RALEIGH, N.C. (WTVD) — It is officially back to the drawing board as the focus of state lawmakers turns to redistricting. New lines for U.S. Congress and the NC General Assembly for 2024 could have an effect, not just for the state, but in the battle for control of the U.S. House.

While North Carolina has been notorious for gerrymandering going back many years, including by Democrats decades ago, it’s now the Republican supermajority with the power to redraw the lines.

As it stands now, the court-drawn maps used in 2022, which produced a 50-50 split delegation of seven Democrats and seven Republicans will not be used again in 2024.

After the then-Democratic-controlled North Carolina Supreme Court invalidated the GOP-drawn lines as partisan gerrymandering, that decision was reversed when the GOP took control of the State Supreme Court.

Now, the question is how far will GOP lawmakers push to expand the number of seats they have in Congress?

At public hearings across the state, including in Raleigh, people weighed in.

“You should exercise the authority with the same vigor as your predecessors in the 90s and early 2000s,” said Jim Womack, a former Lee County commissioner.

But most speakers were concerned about the effects of gerrymandering — specifically keeping geographic communities and counties intact, and making sure voters who are ethnic minorities get a fair chance of equal representation under the Voting Rights Act.

“What I have seen repeatedly is the lack of empathy for the African American community on the legislative level especially when it pertains to fair mapping,” said Wayne Bostick with the A. Philip Randolph Foundation.

What the final maps end up looking like is up in the air, but the original GOP proposal from 2021 might provide some clues.

To maximize Republican seats, many Democratic-leaning voters were packed into blue districts in the Triangle and Charlotte, leaving surrounding areas more GOP-friendly.

In the course of doing that, Wake County would have been split into three different districts. In one area of Apex, the dividing lines would have split sub-divisions in half.

Voters who live there say they hope the lines end up being cleaner to create less confusion and more fairness.

“It feels like instead of dividing in a way that makes sense with physical boundaries it feels very much like cherry-picking,” said Brittany O’Brien from Cary.

Votes in the legislature on the newest map proposals could happen as soon as the week of Oct. 9.

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North Carolina

USC Trojans Predicted to Flip Recruits from Utah, North Carolina Before Signing Day

Published

6 hours ago

November 22, 2024

Press Room

USC Trojans Predicted to Flip Recruits from Utah, North Carolina Before Signing Day

The USC Trojans are in pursuit of flipping two class of 2025 recruits, Nela Tupou and Alex Payne. Can the Trojans flip one or both of these players before national signing day?

Nela Tupou Player Profile

USC Trojans Projected to Flip, Nela Tupou / @lul_nelaa on Instagram

Nela Tupou is a 6-4, 220 pound tight end/defensive end out of Folsom, California. He is rated as a three-star recruit and ranked as the 43rd-best ATH in the class of 2025 per 247Sports.

Tupou committed to the Utah Utes in February of 2024, but he just recently visited USC last weekend for the Trojans’ 28-20 win over the Nebraska Cornhuskers.

On3 is now predicting that Tupou will likely flip this commitment from Utah to USC.

Alex Payne Player Profile

USC Trojans Projected to Flip, Alex Payne / @usc.today on Instagram

Alex Payne is a 6-5, 265 pound offensive tackle out of Gainesville, Florida. He is rated as four-star recruit and ranked as the 16th-best offensive tackle in the class of 2025.

Payne committed to the North Carolina Tar Heels in January of 2024, but he as well as Tupou, visited USC last weekend.

In 247Sports recruiting analyst Tom Loy’s updated crystal ball prediction, he had Payne flipping his commitment from North Carolina to USC. Loy has a good track record of predicting where recruits will end up as his all-time hit rate for predicting recruits’ final destinations is 81.64 percent.

USC Bolstering Up Offensive Line to Go Along With Weapons

Nov 16, 2024; Los Angeles, California, USA; Southern California Trojans running back Quinten Joyner (0) runs the ball against the Nebraska Cornhuskers during the first half at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images / Gary A. Vasquez-Imagn Images

One of the glaring holes for the USC Trojans this season has been the offensive line. For USC to bounce back next season, they will have to get much better in the trenches. This has been exposed in their first season in the Big Ten. Landing Tupou, who can both be a factor in the run blocking scheme as a blocker, and Payne, one of the top tackle prospects in the country, would go a long way for next season and the future of the program.

Barring a flurry of transfer portal decisions, the Trojans will have an abundance of skill position talent coming back next season.

Freshman running back Quinten Joyner has been the second best back this season behind senior running back Woody marks.

Four of the Trojans five leading receivers are sophomores. Makai Lemon, Zachariah Branch, Ja’Kobi Lane, and Duce Robinson all have shown flashes of potentially being a number one wide receiver next season.

Add in the Trojans starting sophomore quarterback Jayden Maiava and they have one of the youngest teams in the Big Ten. If USC continues to address the offensive line in the last days of the 2025 recruiting cycle and in the transfer portal this offseason, the Trojans could be a dangerous team next season.

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MORE: USC Trojans Women’s Basketball Star JuJu Watkins Makes Name, Image, Likeness History

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North Carolina

School closings, delays in Western North Carolina, Friday, Nov. 22

Published

14 hours ago

November 22, 2024

Press Room

School closings, delays in Western North Carolina, Friday, Nov. 22

Some school systems in Western North Carolina are closed Friday, Nov. 21, due to winter weather.

Avery County Schools: Closed, remote learning day.
Graham County Schools: Closed, workday for staff.
Madison County Schools: Closed, optional teacher workday.
Mitchell County Schools: Closed, remote learning day.
Watauga County Schools: Two-hour delay.
Yancey County Schools: Closed, remote learning day.

This story will be updated

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North Carolina has some of the highest STD rates nationwide, report says

Published

24 hours ago

November 21, 2024

Press Room

North Carolina has some of the highest STD rates nationwide, report says

NORTH CAROLINA (WBTV) – North Carolina has some of the highest STD rates nationwide, according to a new study by the U.S. News & World Report.

The report analyzed the highest combined rates of three major sexually transmitted infections: Chlamydia, Gonorrhea, and Syphilis.

As far as the 10 states with the highest STD rates, N.C. ranked No. 7.

The data

According to the report, the state’s total STD rate is 911.5 per 100,000. That has actually decreased by -0.3% since 2022.

Rates for the three major STDs are:

Chlamydia: 607.9 per 100,000
Gonorrhea: 243.2 per 100,000
Syphilis (cumulative): 60.4 per 100,000

South Carolina

South Carolina also has some of the highest STD rates in America, according to the report.

Ranked at No. 8 for the 10 states with the highest STD rates, the state’s total STD rate is 882.8 per 100,000. That has decreased by 10.9% since 2022.

Rates for the three major STDs are: