Billy Corriher
Slate
North Carolina, United States
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Past articles by Billy:
The Biggest Judicial Races in the Country Are in North Carolina. Democrats Are Losing.
Abortion, voting rights, criminal justice, gerrymandering—it’s all on the line in November. → Read More
Florida's DeSantis erases two districts that sent Black people to Congress
Over protests by the state's Black lawmakers, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis pushed his fellow Republicans to adopt a congressional district map that is expected to slash the number of Black representatives for the state. The new map could be challenged in court, but appellate courts have recently sided with the GOP in voting rights cases. → Read More
The Endless War Over How Judges Are Selected
Across the country, legislators are trying to gain more control over their states' courts. Many of the efforts are from Republicans aiming to diminish the role of judicial nominating commissions. → Read More
Voters Reshape State Supreme Courts in the Midwest
Millions of dollars were spent on races for the Michigan, Ohio and Illinois high courts. The elections could impact a host of cases. → Read More
Court Packing? It’s Already Happening at the State Level
In recent years, Republican-led legislatures have been adding state supreme court seats and working to change nominating rules, aiming to bolster conservative majorities. → Read More
Medicaid expansion may face new hurdle at Florida high court
With the coronavirus pandemic spreading, Floridians are collecting the signatures required to put a constitutional amendment expanding Medicaid on the 2022 ballot. But they'll have to overcome new hurdles imposed by the legislature and survive review by the conservative Florida Supreme Court. → Read More
Another blow to North Carolina's new voter ID law
Ruling that a 2018 voter ID law could disenfranchise black voters, the North Carolina Court of Appeals put it on hold last week. A federal court had already blocked the law through the state's primaries, and this latest decision means it's likely to be blocked through November. → Read More
Five supreme court elections to watch in the South
Elections for high courts in five Southern states will take place over the next year, including special elections in Georgia, Kentucky, and Louisiana. Some of these courts are already facing unprecedented political pressure, and more money in high court races is coming from groups that don't disclose their donors. → Read More
When will North Carolina get fair election districts?
Lawmakers are again redrawing legislative election districts after a court ruled last week that the state constitution prohibits "extreme partisan gerrymandering." Republicans claim they want a fair process, but some are asking whether the first draft map favors the GOP. → Read More
Voting rights lawsuits challenge lack of black high court justices
Across the South, voting rights advocates argue that judicial elections violate the Voting Rights Act by depriving communities of color of representation on state courts. Trials will begin soon in federal courts in Arkansas and Alabama, where the state supreme courts are all white. → Read More
There's still hope to stop partisan gerrymandering in North Carolina
Despite the U.S. Supreme Court's refusal to address partisan gerrymandering, North Carolina courts this summer could decide if the extreme partisan manipulation of legislative districts violates the state constitution. Files that belonged to a deceased redistricting guru could shed light on the process, but the parties to the lawsuit are arguing over access to them. → Read More
The end of the N.C. legislature's war on judicial independence?
North Carolina's courts have been in the crosshairs of the Republican-controlled legislature for years, with bills introduced to gerrymander judges, pack the bench, and manipulate judicial elections. But last week, lawmakers quickly restored a controversial cut to the chief justice's budget, suggesting the era of GOP judicial power grabs may be over. → Read More
North Carolina gets new elections director at critical moment
The Democrat-controlled N.C. Board of Elections has appointed a new executive director on a party-line vote. She'll be responsible for running two special congressional elections this year and implementing the state's new voter ID law, which is facing a lawsuit filed by voters who could be disenfranchised. → Read More
Southern legislatures take aim at direct democracy
After voters approved a constitutional amendment restoring the franchise to people with felony convictions, Florida lawmakers are trying to make it harder for citizens to put amendments on the ballot. Legislators in Arkansas, the only other Southern state that allows citizen-initiated amendments, did likewise after voters passed a minimum-wage hike. → Read More
Trump judges threaten Medicaid access in the South
Federal judges have — so far — halted attempts by the region's conservative state leaders to limit or block access to health care through the Affordable Care Act. But Republicans are changing U.S. Senate rules to stack those courts with conservative Trump appointees. → Read More
Jewish appointees bring religious diversity to the South's state supreme courts
Governors in Florida and North Carolina recently appointed Jewish justices to their state supreme courts — a first for North Carolina. Studies have shown that Jewish judges, as well as those who belong to other religious minorities, tend to rule in favor of religious freedom. → Read More
A blow to 'usurper' elected officials in North Carolina
A state judge recently struck down a voter ID amendment to the N.C. Constitution because the legislators who ratified it were elected in unconstitutional, racially gerrymandered districts. Meanwhile, two white sheriffs who ousted black sheriffs with the help of a suspected election fraudster are also facing legal problems. → Read More
Georgia legislators try to kill bail reform and require jail for the poor
A bill in the Georgia legislature would overturn local reforms across the state that keep people from being locked up just because they can’t afford bail. The bail bonds industry lobbied for the bill, which would reverse recent bipartisan reforms, and contributed to the campaigns of the lawmakers who sponsored it. → Read More
Corporate-backed groups seek more pro-business judges in the Deep South
Groups funded by Big Oil and other special interests are reviving a scheme — refined by a Koch brothers associate in the 1990s — to evaluate judges in Louisiana and Mississippi based on whether they rule in favor of corporations. It's the latest effort to stack the judiciary. → Read More
Court packing in coal country
Legislators in Kentucky and West Virginia are discussing constitutional amendments to give governors unprecedented control over choosing judges, who are currently elected. The moves are part of a broader trend of Republican politicians asserting more control over the judiciary. → Read More