'Y’all are idiots': NC chair laughs at GOP maps that fueled party losses

North Carolina Democratic Party Chair Anderson Clayton said that she couldn't help but laugh at Republicans for digging their own political graves for Nov. 3.

Speaking to The Bulwark's Tim Miller on Wednesday night, Clayton said that had Republicans in North Carolina kept the maps that were in place during the 2022 and 2024 elections, they would not have lost as many seats as they did. It was the GOP's gerrymandering that ultimately sank them.

President Donald Trump pressed his GOP allies to usher in new maps redrawn mid-decade rather than after the census. The plan came from his top strategist and deputy chief of staff James Blair, who left the White House to use the Trump PAC to target Indiana Republicans who refused to redraw their lines.

Indiana Republicans said redrawing the lines would make more districts more Democratic and put them at risk in the election, but Trump wouldn't have it. As a result, Indiana's maps stayed the same, and no additional Republicans lost their seats as they did in states like Florida, Texas and North Carolina.

"They would have had four more representatives. Like, if we'd had an even 50/50 split in North Carolina as we did on Free and Fair Maps, they would still have more representatives right now than they did on the dumba—— map that they drew for themselves. I was like, y'all are idiots," laughed Clayton.

Clayton is the youngest Democratic Party chair in the U.S. and has been leading her party for the past three years. She believes the final count will be 11 Democrats to three Republicans in North Carolina. Recounts are still unfolding in the Fifth, Seventh and Tenth congressional districts.

The Fifth is Republican incumbent Virginia Foxx vs. Democrat Chuck Hubbard. Hubbard currently leads by 335 votes, NBC News reported. They also estimate about 900 ballots are left. That means Foxx would need to win 69.3 percent of the remaining vote to catch or overtake Hubbard.

"Enjoy your retirement, Virginia Foxx," Miller said of the 83-year-old congresswoman.

In the Seventh, Republican incumbent David Rouzer leads Democrat Kimberly Hardy by about 2,270 votes. An estimated 1,200 votes remain, and even if Hardy gets all of them, NBC News reported. She still wouldn't have enough ballots to win. When the lead is under 1 percent, however, candidates can request a recount.

The Tenth District is Republican incumbent Pat Harrigan vs. Democrat Ashley Bell, Harrigan leads by approximately 2,485 votes. NBC News similarly projects Harrigan as the winner and estimates that about 500 votes remain to be counted.

Miller said that he had so much faith in Clayton as the party chair that he thought they would win at least nine seats and even Clayton thought he was nuts.

He explained that when Clayton took over, she executed a plan that included Democrats talking to voters all over the state and not just in the Democratic areas.

"That work is what really pays off here," Miller said.

Clayton said that in 2022 Democrats left 44 state legislative seats uncontested and she wasn't having it. So she was inspired to run for chair of the state party, promising that every race would have someone contesting the GOP incumbent.

The plan paid off. Democrats won 71 of the 120 seats in the state House, as of Nov. 11, which was a net gain of 22 seats. In the state Senate, Democrats gained four seats, putting them at 24 wins out of the 50 total seats.

One race remains to be called, with Republican Danny Britt leading Democrat Catina Hamm by 228 votes, within recount range. If Britt wins, Republicans retain a 26–24 majority. If Hamm wins, the chamber splits 25–25. Democratic Lt. Gov. Rachel Hunt would break tie votes.