North Carolina’s First Congressional District has long been at the center of the Black political experience in this state. 

Encompassing much of eastern North Carolina, it includes counties where Black residents fought for the right to vote, to work with dignity, and to be represented.

Now, that legacy is once again under threat.

The General Assembly aims to redraw the district in a way that would significantly reshape its boundaries to include counties that have very different political and demographic makeups. 

This would not only change who represents the region — it will dilute the voting strength of Black North Carolinians who have fought for generations to have a seat at the table.

As the state representative for House District 27 — which includes Halifax, Northampton, and Warren counties — I know how deep this struggle runs. 

Halifax and Northampton were among the 40 NC counties that were subject to federal “preclearance” under Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act. 

Halifax was the only county in the state that, because of its record of discrimination, was barred from relief from federal literacy imperatives (Alston v. Butts, 1964).

These discriminatory laws and practices kept citizens from voting, holding office, and controlling their own destinies. 

They turned to the courts and won.

In Johnson v. Halifax County (1984) and Ellis v. Vance County (1987), lawsuits filed under Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act forced changes in election methods that finally allowed Black candidates to be elected to county commissions. 

Lassiter v. Northampton County Board of Elections (1959) and Bazemore v. Bertie County Board of Elections (1961) challenged the use of literacy tests to disenfranchise Black voters. Other lawsuits across the region — including NAACP v. Roanoke Rapids, Hines v. Mayor and Town Council of Ahoskie, and Wilkins v. Washington County Commissioners — successfully challenged similar discriminatory practices.

This region was also at the heart of Black political power during Reconstruction. 

Known as the “Black Second,” the 1st District and its predecessor elected some of the first Black members of Congress: John Hyman of Warren County, James O’Hara of Halifax County,

Henry Cheatham of Vance County, and George Henry White — the last Black member of Congress from the South until 1972.

After nearly a century without Black representation, North Carolina elected Eva Clayton to Congress in 1992. She was followed by Frank Ballance, G.K. Butterfield, and now Don Davis.

The proposed map shifts the district to include counties represented by two Republican state senators — Norman Sanderson and Bobby Hanig, the latter of whom has already announced his candidacy. 

In 1961, the U.S. Civil Rights Commission found that some of the counties they represent — Bertie, Camden, Currituck, Gates, Halifax, Northampton, and Warren— had the most discriminatory literacy tests in the state.

This is not a race-neutral process. 

Of the state’s eight majority Black counties, all lie in the 1st District. 

These changes fracture Black communities of interest and weaken the ability of Black voters to elect candidates of their choice. 

And they come at a time when the U.S. Supreme Court is set to hear Louisiana v. Callais, a case that could further erode Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act. 

Meanwhile, I am the lead plaintiff in Pierce v. North Carolina State Board of Elections, a federal case now before the Fourth Circuit that challenges the state’s 2023 legislative maps on similar grounds.

This is not just about politics — it’s about power, and who gets to keep it.

But voting rights are only part of the story. 

In eastern North Carolina, the Black struggle has always touched every part of life: education (U.S. v. Scotland Neck City Board of Education), labor (Johnson v. Branch, Moody v. Albemarle Paper Company, Sledge v. J.P. Stevens), public accommodation (Blow v. North Carolina, Keys v. Carolina Coach Company), and property rights (Gary v. Halifax County). Each of these cases reflects the long arc of a fight – not just for civil rights, but for full citizenship.

We are not separate from that history — we are living in it.

Redrawing this district to weaken Black voting strength is a betrayal of everything this region has stood for. 

There are currently only three Black members of Congress from North Carolina. 

We risk losing the only one who represents this region, and the only Black man in the delegation. 

That’s not coincidence — it’s design.

Rodney D. Pierce

State representative, NC House District 27