This book can give you hope for American democracy. Usurpers “documents an important era in North Carolina history and leaves us with a little hope for the future, a little inspiration,” said commentator Rob Schofield of NC Policy Watch. “I love it!” said Western Carolina University Professor Chris Cooper, "The courts will be central to determining the future of representation in the Tar Heel State—read this book to find out why.” Usurpers begins with the story of Anita Earls, born a biracial child and raised by parents who faced discrimination. She achieved her childhood dream of becoming a civil rights lawyer. She brought lawsuits challenging unfair election districts that kept Black voters in North Carolina from exercising political power. Her battle with the state legislature began in 2011, after Republicans won control of the North Carolina legislature for the first time in nearly a century. They quickly gerrymandered election districts to cement their power. Earls and her allies defeated the legislature’s power grabs in court. This made Republicans angry. GOP lawmakers in Raleigh and Washington, D.C. tried to use their power to pack the courts with judges who would rubber stamp their gerrymandering and voter suppression. Politicians in the state capitol even cancelled judicial elections and threatened to pack the courts after voters chose progressive judges. Citizens responded with protests in the streets of Raleigh. Rev. William Barber launched the intersectional "Moral Monday" movement to ensure that voters would still be heard in the gerrymandered legislature. Barber also fought to keep Thomas Farr, a lawyer who defended voter suppression and battled Earls in court, from becoming a federal judge. After 2016, as Republicans stacked the federal judiciary, Earls knew that state courts would be the key to protecting North Carolina’s democracy. So she ran for a seat on the state supreme court, which had the power to block voter suppression bills without being overturned by the U.S. Supreme Court. Republican legislators passed laws designed to handicap Earls’ campaign. If she won, Earls would serve on a court with the power to block discriminatory state laws. They put a constitutional amendment on the ballot that would give them the power to pack the state supreme court, which had a 4-3 Democratic majority. If Earls lost and the amendment passed, Republicans could remove the biggest obstacle to their voter suppression schemes. In the fall of 2018, North Carolina’s democracy was on the line. ... Usurpers isn't just for North Carolinians. In 2022, Republican legislatures across the country are taking a page from the North Carolina GOP’s playbook: Pass voter suppression bills, gerrymander elections, and take over the courts that could stand up for voters. Citizens in those states should look to North Carolina for an example of voters protecting their democracy.