ELON, North Carolina — Democrat Richard Ojeda is hoping that the public’s discontent with the Trump administration can provide enough of a blue wave to unseat Rep. Richard Hudson (R-NC), the chairman of the National Republican Congressional Committee.
Ojeda is running in the Tar Heel State‘s 9th Congressional District against Hudson, but election forecasters such as the Cook Political Report rate the district as “solid Republican.” The fallout from the Iran war and subsequent high gas prices has Democrats dreaming that they can even flip a district that President Donald Trump won by 16 points.
“The polling is one thing, but on the ground, I’m telling you right now, I feel like right now we are winning six of the seven counties, and I think we’re going to keep this momentum going all the way to the end,” Ojeda told the Washington Examiner at a “March to the Polls” event Wednesday evening.
The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee added Ojeda’s race to its “Districts in Play,” yet he’s still the underdog hoping to pull off a miracle in this fight.
In a new memo, the House Majority PAC, a super PAC affiliated with House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, boasted that “Democrats have the momentum, candidates, and strategy to win the House—and now, HMP’s polling shows that with additional resources, even more expansion seats are within reach.”
Included in the memo was data from Public Policy Polling showing Ojeda trailing Hudson by just 4 percentage points, 46% to 42%. A spokesperson for HMP also boasted that Hudson was now running coordinated mail with the NRCC, an indication that Republicans were having to spend precious resources in safe red seats due to the rough political climate they were facing.
“He has spent far too long avoiding his district, and people are tired of that,” Ojeda said of Hudson. “Eighteen months ago they thought this was going to be a walk in the park and they wouldn’t have to spend a penny on it, and now they’re having to use their money for this race to try to save the chair of the NRCC because he hasn’t done anything for his people.”
A source familiar with the GOP operation pushed back on the claim that the NRCC was spending money on Hudson.
“This isn’t an uncommon move because committees get a much lower postage rate,” the source said. “Before the fall of coordination limits this, plenty of members ran mail through state parties to get that same low rate.”
Regardless, Ojeda faces an uphill climb to flip the seat. Hudson has represented the seat since 2013, and the GOP has controlled the district dating back to the 1960s. But there is some precedent for Ojeda.
Former Rep. Sean Patrick Maloney (D-NY), then the chairman of the DCCC, lost his reelection bid to Rep. Mike Lawler (R-NY) in 2022, when the public was furious with former President Joe Biden over the economy.
A former Army major, Ojeda previously served as a West Virginia state senator and ran for Congress in the state but lost to Republican Carol Miller in 2018. Trump campaigned at least three times for Miller during the race to help defeat Ojeda.
An outspoken Trump critic, Ojeda is no stranger to controversy. He once claimed about Trump adviser Stephen Miller, “I’d be willing to go to jail to kick the s*** out of him.” The North Carolina GOP also posted comments from Ojeda claiming, “It’s time for the damn civil war!”
“Richard Ojeda ran out of races to lose in West Virginia, so now he’s shopping for a seat in North Carolina,” said NRCC spokesman Reilly Richardson. “He’s called for a civil war, bragged he’d go to jail to beat up a White House official, and cursed out Christians. Ojeda doesn’t need a seat in Congress. He needs help.”
Ojeda is hoping for downballot help from the popular former Gov. Roy Cooper, who is running for North Carolina’s open Senate seat, and that anger over high costs of living will help him pull off the improbable.
“We have Roy Cooper at the top of the ticket,” Ojeda said. “He’s one of the most beloved politicians in this state. He’s never lost a race. You know, I’m right beneath him.”
Among the key issues Ojeda is touting is making the first $45,000 of a person’s income tax-free. Ojeda also claimed that the visits to the state from Trump and Vice President JD Vance to boost Republican candidates are actually helping him with voters.
“They’re tired of this,” he said. “They can’t afford groceries. They can’t afford gas. Farms are going under because of the diesel. You know, this is what’s going on. I’ve got Republicans coming up to me telling me I’ve never voted for a Democrat in my life, but I’m voting for you because we need some change around here. This is happening.”
Echoing those claims was Gibsonville Mayor Bryant Crisp, whose community is within the 9th District.
“I’m seeing the same thing with unaffiliated Republicans. I have friends whose parents are Republicans,” Crisp told the Washington Examiner. “People I’ve met at the polls that are Republican, and they’re like, I typically would vote that way, but I can’t vote for this again. Our families are struggling. We can’t pay for food and gas.”
Another Trump visit this month, which the president teased this week, “might motivate us more, you know, that he’s coming in our backyard and thinks that he can have a positive influence,” added Ron Osborne, chairman of the Alamance Democratic Party. “But at this point, I’m like, Trump just needs to keep doing what he’s doing because he’s alienating more and more people.”
REPUBLICANS AREN’T GIVING UP ON NORTH CAROLINA EVEN AS NATIONAL GROUPS PULL OUT
Walking to the polls to vote early with supporters, Ojeda said on Wednesday that he was bolstered by the early vote tallies and predicted victory on Nov. 3.
“We’re looking at the numbers that have come in in terms of the percentages of people for, you know, Democrats versus Republicans versus unaffiliated, and I’m telling you right now, the Republicans are being left in the dust,” he said.
Continue reading...
[ H/T Washington Examiner ]
