Top Conservative Picks for North Carolina’s Primary

One of the goals in mind is to inform Conservatives of the most principally aligned candidates. Too many candidates campaign as Conservatives and turn RINO. To some degree, RINOs are avoidable through better vetting of candidates. It is my aim to inform Conservatives in all fifty states their options and evaluate the potential of a candidate to be a principled leader of the Conservative movement. Without further ado, I present the North Carolina Primary edition:

North Carolina is a red state, so there are a lot of incumbent Republicans. The surprise, however, is the amount of Conservatives representing the state. Sure there are some RINOs, but one of those RINOs may actually be dethroned. But overall, North Carolina has strong Conservative representation and an opportunity to expand in that.

Top Picks: Roger Allison, Mark Meadows,

Worst Picks: Gina Collias, Robert Pittenger, Virginia Foxx

Honorable Mention: Chuck Archerd

Best Races: District 11, District 9

Worst Races: District 10, District 3

District 1

Running unopposed is Roger Allison. He looks to unseat GK Butterfield. Allison surprised me on his stances. He starts off on gun control stating that he was not a member of the NRA, nor does he own a firearm, and then prededed in a very principled stance on the 2nd Amendment that included opposition to age requirements and limitations on the types and accessories to firearms available. On immigration he states outright that we ought not believe for a second that the Hispanic community supports sanctuary states. He then had a very informed approach on the issue. I can’t say for certain that Roger Allison is the perfect conservative but he’s no bumper sticker conservative and is capable of bringing fresh ideas to the table.

Conservative Pick: Roger Allison

District 2

Incumbent George Holding looks to hold on to his seat. George Holding is a fiscally responsible Conservative. He did not vote for Omnibus and has an excellent fiscal record. Having only held the office since 2013, he hasn’t exceeded a reasonable term limit either. Allen Chesser seeks to “drain the swamp” following up on Trump’s call to vote out the “establishment.” Chesser is running as a Trumpist, but I genuinely believe he is conservative. However, he has a weak case in attacking Holding’s record. He states without evidence that Holding has abandoned Conservative values. His swamp attribution to Holding is that he accepted a large amount of Super PAC money. This is a weak case for attacking the character of someone who has voted against the swamp in critical times such as the Omnibus bill. Chesser is grasping for straws against Holding. Nonetheless, I think he would have made an ideal candidate in a different race.

Conservative Pick: George Holding

District 3

This is a competitive primary race, something Conservatives need more of. Incumbent Walter Jones has held the seat for 23 years and has a 88% Liberty Score from Conservative Review.  Why is he being challenged? It appears he voted against tax cuts. He abstained from voting on the most recent government spending packages, a possible sign of swampiness or cowardice because his votes on spending would be used against him. One of the key differences between Walter Jones and challenger Scott Dacey is Dacey’s relentless insistence of Trump’s agenda. Jones voted against the Trumpcare bill which was no true repeal of Obamacare. Dacey insists that he would have voted for this disappointing bait and switch. These appear to be the biggest distinctions between these two heavy weight candidates. Dacey has tapped the endorsement of Mike Huckabee and Hermain Cain. I would argue that Mike Huckabee decreases his chances of winning in November May, not that this seat is in danger. The biggest overall concern is that Dacey is in no way a fiscal conservative because he would vote however Trump would. Career politician or not, Jones at least can think for himself, even if he thought tax cuts were a bad idea…

But there is a third option even with these heavy hitters, Phil Law looks to be the dark horse in this race. Law is a former Marine and a social media favorite in this race. He has the right positions and an emphasis on individual liberty. He is neither a career politician nor a populist. I think 23 years is long enough.

Conservative Pick: Phil Law

District 4

Steve Von Loor is challenging Democrat David Price. He is unopposed in the GOP primary. Von Loor is an immigrant from Ecuador and is apologetically pro-life. He has all of the signs of being a good candidate even if in a particularly hard race.

Conservative Pick: Steve Von Loor

District 5

Up until Omnibus, Virginian Foxx had a decent record. She’s being challenged. The first challenger is Courtland Meader. By no means is Meader a business-friendly candidate. While he would end an income tax and corporate welfare, he would impose and income tax on corporations and stricter regulations on executive compensation. I don’t believe he knows how a corporation works. Hard pass on Meader. Dillon Gentry is running a lax campaign to help inspire other young people to do the same. He has the potential to be a decent Congressman but is unlikely to be selected. I see Foxx winning this primary handily but would say Gentry is worth a vote to keep Foxx on her toes.

Conservative Pick: Dillon Gentry

District 6

Bradley Mark Walker has held the office for 3 years and has a decent record. He is unopposed.

District 7

David Rouzer has been in office since 2015 and has become more Conservative as time passes. He voted against Omnibus but voted for previous spending measures. He is unopposed and well funded.

District 8

Richard Hudson is unopposed. He’s been in office for two terms and has the emerging horn of a RINO. He voted for Omnibus and for funding Planned Parenthood on multiple occasions.

District 9

Having lost in 2016 by triple digits, Mark Harris is making another run against Robert Pittenger. Pittenger is the type of Republican that runs on smaller government yet recklessly votes for spending. He’s only been in since 2013 and already sucks. Mark Harris also ran and lost trying to unseat Thom Thills, the RINO Senator out of North Carolina. Mark Harris seems like the guy who would vote the right way but has no idea how to run a campaign. But the right circumstances could give him victory over the disappointing incumbent. Those right circumstances: Mike Huckabee staying away from his campaign and good voter turnout. Under 27000 people voted this race for the 2016 primary in District 9. The three candidates evenly split the votes with Pittenger narrowly coming out ahead. Pittenger only won a single county and had a poor performance in the others. A quality campaign by Harris should land him a victory. The Conservative vote was split in 2016 but I can’t blame Todd Johnson’s campaign for he was probably the better choice. Nonetheless, the worst choice in this race is Robert Pittenger. If Mark Harris can’t win this race, he should give up on politics. This race is his for the taking.

Conservative Pick: Mark Harris

District 10

Patrick McHenry is busting out some cash to fend off his primary opponents. Perhaps this isn’t necessary. He has five to fend off and people blindly vote for incumbents. If you want a spender, Patrick McHenry is the choice. First to oppose him is Seth Blackenship. His campaign features a refreshing “Rebuild our Foundation” message backed by youthful Conservative. Looking to unseat McHenry for a second time and to run for Congress for and eighth time(!) is Albert Wiley Jr. He has a very good professional record and decent motives to run for office. But in unseating McHenry, I don’t see Wiley as the strongest candidate to do so. Running from the left of even McHenry is Gina Collias who is parroting leftist anti-gun propaganda. She says she’s running because the 2016 election “demeaned” the GOP. She also wants to reform Obamacare and provide citizenship to DACA. She is the most leftist candidate of the North Carolina and Indiana primaries on the Republican side. The MAGA candidate, his words, is Ira Roberts. He’s what you would expect. Tough on immigration, good on guns. On healthcare he talks more about repealing Obamacare than replacing it, which is good. His most unique stance is against news outlets misleading people with sensationalized headlines. He doesn’t offer solutions, rather he says he will take on the media. I don’t think Roberts is a bad candidate. Next up is Jeff Gregory who came in a distant 2nd place in the same race in 2016, ahead of Wiley. He says he’s Conservative and uses the bumper sticker language. I’ll believe it but no website and no social media presence. If he doesn’t take his campaign seriously, why should anyone else?

So this choice comes down between Blackenship and Roberts. Both candidates want to address the debt and regulations. However, Blackenship has a better vision and I think this is because he has a much more principled foundation as a Conservative.

Conservative Pick: Seth Blackenship

District 11

Mark Meadows is the Chair of the Freedom Caucus. He has a Liberty Score of 95, the highest out of North Carolina. On top of that he’s only been in office for five years. So who would challenge him? Some guy named Chuck Archerd. This is quite fascinating because Archerd actually hopes he loses. He is merely running as a place holder in case Meadows is appointed by Trump to some office. How strategic and what a team player. Meadows is doing a fine job and would otherwise run unopposed.

Conservative Pick: Mark Meadows

District 12

In District 12, Alma Adams is the incumbent Democrat holding the seat. Running to represent Charlotte is Paul Bonham. Bonham is a Conservative supporting Obamacare repeal, border walls, and voter ID. He also supports a flat tax, of which I am partial. He has an interesting past, including a run-in with the law, that has inspired his push for criminal justice reform. Carl Presson is the next challenger. He believes in a nationwide “gun license” which is problematic when he began his stance by saying how great the 2nd Amendment was and ended with comparing it to cars and saying current gun owners would have five years to comply. Presson is also lax on illegal immigration and has a misunderstanding about what birthright citizenship actually is. To add to the confusion, he suggests that individual who make less than $50000/year (married couples $100000) shouldn’t pay taxes. This would mean income taxes are a punishment for being well off and would make poverty far more comfortable. Last is Paul Wright. He seems like a good Christian man but is very onetrack minded about stuff. This isn’t his first election. He’s running on the platform of reversing the “deChristianization” of America. My concern is that he has a very theocratic approach to governance that doesn’t seem to always coincide with individual liberties. He seems like a great guy but not a good candidate.

Conservative Pick: Paula Bonham

District 13

Last but certainly not least is Ted Budd. He has been in Congress for a year and has maintained a strong Conservative record on spending and other matters. He is running unopposed.