Political Newcomers to Battle for NC9
CHARLOTTE, NC — North Carolina’s 9th congressional district will send new blood to Washington.
Incumbent Robert Pittenger lost his bid for a fourth term in the Republican primary. Now Democrats are looking to flip the seat in the November mid-terms.
Dan McCready and Mark Harris will battle it out to represent North Carolina’s 9th congressional district in November.
“I realized last year how divided our country has become,” says McCready. “How dysfunctional Washington has become. And what a need we have for new leaders to step up and serve.”
“We’re excited about having won the primary, but today is kind of the first day of the general election,” says Harris. “And so for us, that means jumping into fundraising almost immediately.”
Both won primary victories Tuesday night. McCready received 82% of the vote on the Democratic side, pulling in more votes than the three candidates in the GOP race, combined.
Harris, who knocked out incumbent Robert Pittenger, calls that an aberration.
“This is a district that Donald Trump won,” says Harris. “This is a district that really wants to see the very agenda items that he put forth moved forth through Congress.”
“I think what we’re seeing is my message of country over party is really resonating with folks in North Carolina,” says McCready.
McCready is a Charlotte native who joined the Marines after college, led a platoon of 65 in Iraq, graduated from Harvard Business School and started a local company that builds solar farms.
Harris is a former pastor at Charlotte’s First Baptist Church, who gained political notoriety as the voice for North Carolina’s controversial Amendment One, which banned same-sex marriage.
“I’m someone who believes that we’re all on the same team,” says McCready. “We’re in this together. And we’re building a bipartisan coalition to work for the people of North Carolina. Mark Harris is someone who practices the same old divisive and extreme politics that’s made Washington the swamp that it is.”
“The truth of the matter is, Dan is a part of the Democratic Party, which is led by Chuck Schumer and Nancy Pelosi,” says Harris. “And you can deny that all you want to, but he’s going to have to live with that.”
McCready starts with a huge lead over Harris in campaign finances. The latest FEC reports show the democrat with more than $1.2 million for the general election. Harris has $70,000 after a hard fought primary.
