RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — Republican congressional challengers Richard Hudson and Scott Keadle are both trying to show they are the most conservative candidate in North Carolina’s 8th congressional district.
Voting has begun for 15 statewide, congressional and legislative seats, but Republicans feel especially hopeful of turning the state’s 8th district red.
U.S. Rep. Larry Kissell, a Democrat, is facing a tough re-election in a district that has been withdrawn to favor Republicans.
Hudson and Keadle both appeal to the Republican base as conservatives fighting against the political system. Both vow to repeal President Barack Obama’s health care overhaul if elected. Both claim tea party support, but neither says he is a member of the political movement.
Early voting began Thursday and ends July 14. The runoff election is slated for July 17.
A former textile worker and high school history teacher, Kissell is seeking his third two-year term. He was first elected in 2008, when he unseated Republican Robin Hayes, the grandson of textile magnate Charles Cannon.
Kissell recently voted with Republicans to hold Attorney General Eric Holden in contempt of Congress and says he, too, will vote to repeal the Affordable Care Act. However, it’s unclear if that will be enough to sway voters in the redrawn southern Piedmont district, which stretches from the Charlotte suburbs to counties that border South Carolina.
The two Republican challengers survived a five-man rumble for the party nod. Hudson won 10 of the 12 counties and took home the highest vote percentage, 32 percent. Keadle received 22 percent, edging out fellow Republican Vernon Robinson for the runoff spot by 2,506 votes.
“He’s trying to portray himself as the person who has all the conservative support, but if you look at the people fighting the status quo they’re supporting me,” Hudson, a 40-year-old former congressional aide from Concord, said of Keadle.
Hudson has never held elective office, but recently picked up the endorsement of former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, now a Fox News talk show host. He says his lack of public service experience gives him an outsider’s perspective.
“I think it’s a lot more valuable to have someone who has been in the real world and who’s going to Washington with a fresh perspective and doesn’t owe anyone anything,” said Hudson, owner of Cabarrus Marketing Group.
However, Keadle sees Hudson’s time in Washington in a different light.
“I’m not Washington,” said Keadle. “I’m North Carolina. People don’t want Washington.”
Keadle, a 47-year old dentist from Mooresville, uses his business experience to illustrate his point.
“Who’s the career guy?” asked Keadle. “I’ve spent 22 years full-time as a dentist. I’m a career dentist. I’m working here today in my office and he’s out campaigning.”
Keadle, a former Iredell County Commissioner, previously lost bids for Congress in North Carolina’s 10th and 12th districts. He has the endorsement and financial support of the conservative Club For Growth, which supports limited government and has helped defeat moderate Republican candidates in the past. He proudly accepts the money flowing in from out of the state.
“Go to their website, see what they stand for and vote accordingly,” Keadle said.
Hudson has a different take.
“I just think the voters of this district don’t want a pro-China Washington group spending money to elect someone,” Hudson said.
The two candidates had each raised more than $450,000 as of mid-April, according to the Federal Election Commission website. But Keadle had $270,000 in debt, compared to $100,000 in debt for Hudson
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Allen Reed can be reached on Twitter at: —http://twitter.com/Allen_Reed
