The Associated Press, in wire copy carried by PBS NewsHour, reports that North Carolina's redrawn congressional map takes aim at the state's only swing seat, held by Democratic Rep. Don Davis, as part of President Donald Trump's multistate redistricting campaign. The Associated Press reports that Republicans hold 10 of the state's 14 House seats and hope to flip an 11th under the changes to the 1st District and the adjoining 3rd District. CBS News reports that Laurie Buckhout won the five-candidate Republican primary on March 3, setting up a rematch against Davis in November, and NPR reports she won the nomination according to an AP race call.
NPR reports that state Republicans swapped 10 counties between the 1st and 3rd districts, using 2024 presidential results, to add voters with a history of backing Republican candidates. Roll Call reports that the change turned the northeastern district from one Trump carried by 3 points in 2024 into one he would have carried by 12 points, according to calculations by Inside Elections. The Associated Press reports that litigation against the map said the Black voting-age population in the district would fall from 40% to 32%. NBC News reports that a three-judge federal panel unanimously declined to block the map, writing that "the direct evidence shows that the 2025 redistricting was motivated by partisan purposes."
NPR reports that Black Democrats have held the seat since 1992, when Eva Clayton became the first Black person North Carolina had elected to Congress since Reconstruction. The Associated Press reports that the district has been represented by Black members of Congress continuously for more than 30 years. CNN reports that Trump won the district in 2024 even as Davis won a second term by less than two percentage points. Roll Call reports that the new map would be the fifth used for House races in North Carolina in as many election cycles, and that Davis's home in Snow Hill now lies in the 3rd District.
Roll Call reports that Davis is an Air Force veteran who spent more than a decade in the North Carolina Senate, serves on the House Agriculture and Armed Services committees and belongs to the New Democrat Coalition. It also reports that he has a moderate voting record and has broken with his party on legislation relating to transgender rights and immigration. CBS News reports that Buckhout is a retired Army colonel, and CNN reports that she briefly worked for the Department of Defense in 2025 before launching her latest campaign. CNN reports that Trump has endorsed her, and Roll Call reports she was named to the National Republican Congressional Committee's MAGA Majority program. Roll Call and CNN report that the prediction market Kalshi fined Buckhout $25,000 and suspended her for three years after she bet on her own race, and CNN reports that Kalshi said she traded less than $1,000.
Roll Call reports that as of late March, Davis had $2.9 million banked to Buckhout's $1.5 million. Fox News reports that Leading the Future, a super PAC that backs AI-friendly candidates, supported Buckhout with a six-figure ad buy before the March primary.
Buckhout made the remark in a statement after Kalshi announced its penalty against her.
“It was a dumb mistake, and as soon as I learned there was an issue, I worked to make it right. Safe to say my career as a Kalshi trader was short-lived.”
Buckhout spoke in an interview with Fox News Digital about immigration enforcement.
“We need to support them more… More technology, more access roads going down to the border so that they can access the border safely. We need to let them safely do their jobs with every technology available,”
Buckhout spoke in an interview with Fox News Digital about immigration enforcement.
“The safety of the American people depends upon it. You don't have sovereignty without a border. I mean, that's just the bottom line.”
Buckhout spoke in an interview with Fox News Digital about the district's economy.
“We need to protect our food sources, protect our farmers, protect our fishermen. And once again, build up the economy from the ground up because the Democrats have been ignoring it for so long,”
Buckhout spoke in an interview with Fox News Digital during the 2024 campaign.
“We have to admit that Davis is just Biden's, you know, surrogate on the ground. He's his agent, he's his guy. He does what Biden says, he votes with Biden,”
Davis wrote the post on social media after Kalshi announced its penalty against Buckhout.
“The news that my opponent was caught, fined, and slapped with a three-year ban for trading on insider information is a disqualifying breach of public trust,”
Davis posted the remark on social media when he announced his run for a third term from the redrawn 1st District.
“Many feel Washington, D.C., isn't serving their needs, and the redistricting battle clearly proves it,”
Davis responded in a statement after a federal panel allowed the new map to be used.
“Although the court's decision keeps North Carolina at the center of this national mid-decade redistricting battle, we will continue to show eastern North Carolina families why they matter most,”
Davis made the remark in a statement released after the legislature gave final approval to the new congressional map.
“While families in eastern North Carolina face real struggles and concerns, our state has prioritized passing a new congressional map that affects only our region, with the intention of predetermining the outcome of an election 377 days away,”
Davis spoke in an interview with Fox News Digital during the 2024 campaign.
“Let me be clear. I want to thank Col. Buckhout for her service to our country. But I think she couldn't be more off on that whole comment because this is not about being beholden,”
Platforms are on the candidates' own sites, linked above.