NC-02: Jim Duncan is “testing the waters.” (It begins?)
It appears that outgoing Chatham County GOP chairman Jim Duncan is hearing the calls for change in the Second Congressional District. He’s formed something called a ”testing the waters committee” — quite similar to the exploratory committees that you hear about in presidential races. The committee’s web site can be found at http://www.jimfornc.com.
I talked with a source very close to Duncan who offered up some details on this development. The committee allows money to be raised for an eventual Duncan congressional campaign, and provides a vehicle for him to communicate his views to district residents and gauge support for a potential primary campaign against incumbent Renee Ellmers.
Duncan’s name came up in 2014 as a potential primary challenger to Ellmers. (He bowed out of that cycle due to some private family matters.) This latest development puts him a lot closer to pulling the trigger on a campaign for Congress than he was prior to 2014.
Duncan has quite the Horatio Alger life-story. Born and raised in low-income housing in New York City to parents recently transplanted from South Carolina, Duncan rose to the top of a successful technology company with an international clientele. He retired from that position to Chatham County, North Carolina, where
he and his wife currently reside.
As Chatham County GOP chairman, Jim Duncan has been credited as a major force in revitalizing that organization’s fiscal and political fortunes. In that position, he has regularly knocked heads with Pittsboro mayor and outgoing NC Democrat Party chairman Randy Voller.
Duncan — or any primary opponent, for that matter — should have plenty of ammunition to use against Ellmers. She has angered GOP base voters by double-crossing them on issues ranging from spending to ObamaCare, amnesty for illegal aliens, and — most recently — late term abortion.
Any GOP primary election for the 2nd district would be held in May 2016.
God bless him, if Brat can beat Cantor anything is possible, but he’ll need all of us.
He had my attention at “not Renee Ellmers” 🙂
So glad you, good friend Jim, are taking this important step. Step by step we will be working with you, Jim. District 2 voters need a person in the House of Representatives who will truly REPRESENT them. You will listen and you will hear your constituents. We are with you all the way to the election. Thank you for this very important move toward candidacy and election. We respect your courage, conviction, faith and ability. Your team is ready to GO!
“Born and raised in New York City…………..”
Reminds me of that ad for Pace Picante sauce. A stranger in town tries to get the guys to eat some of his new sauce but they reject his offer when one old cowboy yells out, “Why this stuff is made in New York City.”
I prefer to judge the character of the individual, not where ones birth certificate indicates. If Mr. Duncan is testing the waters, then I say jump in! Our responsibility is to vet the man, not his city of birth.
At least the birth certificate ain’t from Kenya. That’s something I suppose.
His parents had recently moved from South Carolina, and that is close enough. The current mayor of London, England, Boris Johnston, was also born in New York City and that hasn’t hurt him politically.
I agree that a New Yorker’s chances are better in London than the hallowed ground of this district.
Jim’s from NY and the incumbent is from Ironwood, MI. We all came from somewhere and NY’s not bad. It’s clear to me from Jim’s work in NC that his heart is here, in North Carolina. He’s a North Carolina man now, through and through. Just look at the solid work he’s done and continues to do throughout the 2nd District and beyond. Tough to match THAT!
This is the easy stage when opponents can cherry pick votes that an incumbent makes and spin them to feed their base. I could point out that under Jim Duncan’s leadership of the GOP lost control of the county commissioners. Not much of a record to point out.
Should Congresswomen Ellmers look vulnerable then candidates with more qualifications will emerge for the challenge.
There is only one person who could challenge the Congresswoman and even he has not decided yet.
Ellmers is a liberal Big Government Republican, and her voting record is what in the military would be called a target rich environment. She is road kill in a primary for an opponent with enough funds to get the message out, and Renee’s alllies like liberal activist and Obama bundler Mark Zuckerberg won’t be able to save her.