Jeff Jackson will run for Congress in new district with parts of Charlotte
State Sen. Jeff Jackson on Friday will announce he’ll run for Congress in a newly-drawn district that includes much of Mecklenburg County, and part of Gaston County.
He’ll bring with him the majority of the $830,000 that he had left over from his abandoned bid for U.S. Senate. He told the Charlotte Observer Friday morning he has decided to run, after saying Thursday — the day filing opened — he wanted to discuss the possibility with his wife and kids.
He’s the second Democrat — but by far the most well-funded — to announce a candidacy in the 14th District, which is comprised of southern and western Mecklenburg and eastern Gaston County. Previous district maps drawn by North Carolina Republicans were deemed unconstitutional and the map to be used in 2022 elections was drawn by a three-judge panel this month.
Another candidate, Ramin Mammadov, announced his candidacy on Thursday.
With the new map, Mecklenburg County’s two congressional districts are expected to go to Democrats.
U.S. Rep. Alma Adams said on Twitter that she’ll run in District 12, which includes most of the county north and west of uptown Charlotte. As an incumbent, she is expected to win.
District 14 is likely to be the more interesting race, at least during the primary. Julie Eiselt, the mayor pro tem of the Charlotte City Council, is rumored to be considering a run in that district. She said in a text message to the Observer on Thursday that she was “still evaluating” that option.
The redrawing also disrupts expectations for Republicans who would have had a more competitive district in Mecklenburg County had the court not redrawn the map.
Jackson comes into the race with money, access to more money and the good will of the Democratic Party — something that may have been in short supply before he left the senate race, said Chris Cooper, a professor of political science at Western Carolina University.
“He will have to be in the conversation of frontrunners regardless of who enters the race,” Cooper said.
Under a previous iteration of the map, U.S. Rep. Madison Cawthorn was running for a district that would have included some of western Mecklenburg. Under another version, some experts speculated that state Rep. Tim Moore would enter the race.
Now, though, it will be difficult for any Republican to win. Cawthorn has not yet said where he’ll run for reelection.
Moore, if he ran in his home district east of the 14th, would be up against Rep. Patrick McHenry, “something no politician wants to do,” Cooper said.
“This is a tough map for a Tim Moore congressional run,” he said.
As for who might run against Jackson in the primary, voters will know within the next week. The deadline for candidates to file ends March 4 at noon.
Cooper said Jackson’s competitor is likely to come from the state legislature, or city or county government.
They’ll be up against a Jackson who may have positioned himself more favorably than he had before his U.S. Senate bid. In that race, he ran against Cheri Beasley, a former state Supreme Court Chief Justice who had already ran and won statewide elections.
While Jackson was and remains popular among grassroots Democrats, Beasley was the preferred candidate among party elites, Cooper said.
There was also a question in that race about whether Jackson had jumped too far too quickly, from the state senate to the U.S. Senate, and whether Beasley, a Black woman, would be more representative of the party’s image and goals.
The U.S. House, though, is “the classic” move up for someone in Jackson’s position, Cooper said.
Mecklenburg County district
Because the new map was drawn by a three-judge panel, it can only be used for one election cycle.
That means, by the time the two-year U.S. House term runs out in 2024, candidates will be operating under a different congressional map — one that may be drawn by the Republican-held state legislature.
If the Republicans gain seats on the state Supreme Court, some experts speculate that the party will more easily make the map favor their party.
“The 14th District only really allows you one turn,” said Malcolm Graham, a Charlotte City Councilman. “It’s a job with a definite ending to it.”
Graham said he hopes candidates will be able to tell voters what exactly they’ll prioritize with those two years in Washington. He said the city and county need support for historically Black colleges and universities, and more funding for transportation and infrastructure projects.
The new representative should “follow Alma (Adams’) lead, who has represented Mecklenburg with grace and dignity,” he said. “We need someone who can really just come in and represent the people — and pick country over party.”
County commissioner Leigh Altman said she also hopes the winner will prioritize transportation and infrastructure funding, as well as healthcare and voting rights.
“Jeff (Jackson) is great,” Altman said. “There are a lot of great Democrats in the district, so I’m excited to see how the race unfolds.”
She added that, even if the map is redrawn in two years to favor Republicans, “Whoever is elected from the 14th will have the opportunity to do very impactful things for this nation and state and the world,” she said.
“My cycles are two years also,” she said. “I cannot tell you all the moments that I felt I’ve been able to make a difference in this community and for the residents of Mecklenburg County.”
What does Jackson want for Mecklenburg?
In a brief interview with the Observer, Jackson said will prioritize, first and foremost, “practical needs of the district,” including affordable housing, early childhood education and transportation.
“In a rapid growth urban setting (like Charlotte), transit simply has to be a higher priority than it has been,” he said. “And the federal government needs to be a stronger partner.”
Beyond those issues, he said he would also focus and campaign on addressing climate change and securing voting rights.
This story was originally published February 25, 2022 at 1:52 PM.
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