Two Republican members of Congress from North Carolina say they "accidentally" signed their names on an anti-gerrymandering brief sent to the Supreme Court -- a problem many believe was created by the GOP's "racial" redistricting.
According to the News & Observer, GOP Reps. Mark Meadows and Walter Jones said they signed the amicus brief sent to the Supreme Court in support of a gerrymandering case in Wisconsin because of "errors" or "miscommunication."
“As he does with all action items, Congressman Meadows indicated he would be willing to review the amicus brief but never intended to formally sign on,” Meadows' spokesman Ben Williamson said in a written statement. “His name was added in error and has been removed from the brief."
Meadows also told the N&O that he supports the state's General Assembly, the legislative body charged with drawing voting district maps. That same body drew 2011 maps that the Supreme Court overturned after a lower court ruled in favor of North Carolina Republicans' redistricting plan that drew districts along "racial" lines.
Rep. David Price (D-NC) is now the single member of the state's 15-person congressional delegation who supports the brief, and his office told the N&O that their support of the anti-gerrymandering efforts are solid.
“Yes, we absolutely meant to sign the brief and have no intentions of dropping our support,” Sawyer Hackett, Price’s spokesperson, told the newspaper.
In a statement, Price also said that North Carolina "has been ground-zero for hyper-partisan gerrymandering," and he is "proud to add my voice to this effort."
