North Carolina doesn’t like to be left out of the political spotlight, even in years when we don’t seem to have any high profile races. Next year is a blue moon election when we have no statewide council of state or federal races at the top the ticket. Historically, these elections have had record low turnout. Even so, as the fight for control of the US House heats up, North Carolina is shaping up to have some marquee races.

In particular, FEC reports indicate that North Carolina’s Second and Ninth Congressional districts will be interesting all year long. Both seats have competitive primaries to draw attention in the spring and, judging from the money, Republicans will need to put up serious fights to defend their seats. Grab the popcorn.

In NC02, Republican incumbent George Holding had a lackadaisical fundraising cycle. He also spent everything he raised, leaving him with less money cash on hand than two challengers. The majority of money has come from special interests, not people. In addition, Holding has already spent over $600,000 since the first of the year.

So how did Holding spend so much money? Well, his consultants are making out pretty well. They got the largest chunk of money. And he’s treating his special interests buddies to a lot of food and beverage. Two fundraisers in DC cost almost $65,000 combined. Did you get one of those invitations? Drain the swamp!

Of course, Holding’s corporate buddies will come to the rescue if the money really gets tight. His potential Democratic opponents are underwriting campaigns with serious cash. Ken Romley (full disclosure: I’m helping Ken) and Sam Searcy each posted over $250,000. Holding will likely have a race on his hands next fall. Until then, he’ll just continue to sleep on the job and dine on the largess of his donors.

Over in NC09, the GOP will have a repeat of the primary in 2016. Incumbent Robert Pittenger faces preacher Mark Harris in May. Harris almost beat Pittenger back then and will almost certainly give him a run for his money this time. Harris raised slightly more money than the incumbent this past quarter, always a red flag for the person in office.

Regardless of who comes out on top next May, he will face a formidable challenge from Dan McCready. McCready outraised them both by a large margin and has a significant cash on hand advantage. McCready will have a primary of his own, but assuming he survives that, he’ll start the General Election cycle with more money and relative weak challengers. Pittenger has never been a great candidate and has struggled with ethical issues. Harris is a social conservative who doesn’t reflect the values of the country club conservatives who make up the Southeast Charlotte part of the district.

In other districts, Democrats are moving as well. Dr. Kyle Horton raised almost $100,000 in her bid to unseat David Rouzer in NC07. Ryan Watts posted more than $40,000 in his race against Mark Walker. Two Democrats, Jenny Marshall and Denise Adams, have raised over $50,000 each in their primary to take on Virginia Foxx. We may not have the spotlight we’ve enjoyed in past elections cycles, but North Carolina will still be on the national radar as Democrats try to take back the House. Candidates are doing the work to make races across the state competitive.

Thomas Mills

Thomas Mills is the founder and publisher of PoliticsNC.com. Before beginning PoliticsNC, Thomas spent twenty years as a political and public affairs consultant. Learn more >