Observer endorsement: The Democrats’ best option to beat Dan Bishop in NC’s 9th District

North Carolina’s 9th Congressional District primary — and the general election that follows — will look a lot different than the district’s special election less than six months ago. Gone is the national spotlight, and gone is a lot of the outside money that came with it. Like other N.C. congressional districts, the 9th also was redrawn last year under court order. It’s slightly more favorable to Democrats now.

The Republican in that special election, Dan Bishop, is now the incumbent. He will face one of four lesser-known Democrats competing in the March 3 Super Tuesday primary: Lumberton lawyer Marcus Williams; Charlotte financial services executive Cynthia Wallace; Baptist minister Clayton Brooks; and Hoke County commissioner Harry Southerland.

One candidate, Wallace, stands out in the field. We recommend her in the Democratic primary.

Wallace is well known and respected in area Democratic Party circles. She’s been the party’s 9th District chair for three years and was on the executive committee before that. Those positions took her regularly into the district’s diverse counties, providing her with a deep knowledge of voters in the 9th. Wallace also brings a rural farming and factory background that, along with her 25-year career in finance, allows her to connect with voters from urban Mecklenburg to more rural counties in the eastern part of the district.

“It’s not theoretical for me,” she told the editorial board earlier this month. “I’m a different kind of candidate than we’ve had in the past.”

Wallace’s positions are moderate for the party, including her preference to strengthen the Affordable Care Act instead of adopting a Medicare for All health insurance structure. That should appeal to the suburban and rural persuadable voters in the newly drawn 9th, and her familiarity with agri-business and passion for issues such as equal pay for women could provide inroads with critical blocs of voters. (The gender pay disparity is greater in the 9th Congressional District than any other in North Carolina, Wallace says, with women making just 72 cents for every dollar men make in similar jobs.)

Among the other candidates in the primary, Southerland is the only one with experience in office as a Hoke County commissioner. He’s a moderate Democrat who believes that voters in the 9th District are ready for their representative in the U.S. House to focus on jobs and health care instead of battles involving President Trump. The editorial board appreciated Williams’ breadth of public service, decades of local leadership and independence on issues. We also hope Brooks develops specific policy positions to accompany his thoughtfulness and energy toward improving the lives of people in North Carolina.

Wallace, however, offers the broad base of support and thoughtful grasp of issues that can give Democrats the best chance in November.

NC 12th District

Voters in North Carolina’s 12th Congressional District might be surprised to find a challenger to popular incumbent Alma Adams on the Democratic primary ballot. That challenger, Keith Cradle, told the editorial board this month that he is no longer running in the primary but made the decision too late to have his name removed from ballots.

“The timing and inability to raise the needed funds for a competitive race were true hindrances,” said Cradle.

Adams continues to be a strong representative in the 12th, one who is active in Charlotte and is developing a powerful voice for N.C. progressives in Washington. We hope the thoughtful Cradle, who is director of youth and juvenile programs for the Mecklenburg County Sheriff’s Office, continues to pursue public service down the road.

This story was originally published February 19, 2020 at 4:00 AM.