Trump makes surprise endorsement in NC — a candidate who hadn’t announced his campaign
In a surprising move Wednesday, former President Donald Trump announced his support in a North Carolina congressional race for a candidate who hadn’t publicly announced a campaign.
But it’s no mistake: Addison McDowell is announcing that he will run in North Carolina’s 6th Congressional District and has Trump’s endorsement to boot.
“Addison McDowell will be a great Congressman, and has my Complete and Total Endorsement,” Trump posted on his social media platform, Truth Social.
“I am honored to have earned the endorsement of President Donald Trump,” McDowell said in a news release. “A lot of jobs previous generations in this region enjoyed no longer exist because previous leaders allowed those jobs to be shipped overseas. We’ve seen firsthand in North Carolina what happens when we don’t protect and promote American jobs as priority one and that’s why I’m proud to support the American First Agenda that President Trump champions.”
McDowell isn’t a well-known name in North Carolina politics, but that may be about to change.
Born and raised in Davidson County, he worked on Rep. Richard Hudson’s 2016 campaign and then from 2017 to 2019 in Sen. Ted Budd’s congressional office, while Budd served in the U.S. House representing the same area of the state. McDowell said in a news release that he considers his job with Budd one of his best because he was able to help his neighbors.
“The good people of North Carolina’s 6th Congressional District have been there for my family and me throughout my life,” McDowell said in the release. “Now I’d be honored if they would elect me to fight for them as their member of Congress.”
McDowell currently is registered as a lobbyist for Blue Cross Blue Shield.
Trump passes over Mark Walker, Bo Hines
A Trump endorsement in North Carolina has proven to be invaluable, and McDowell would have seen that firsthand when it helped lift his former boss, Budd, from a trailing candidate in the 2022 Senate primary, to not only defeat former Gov. Pat McCrory and former Rep. Mark Walker but to go on and win in the general election.
This also means Trump is once again passing over Walker for an endorsement, since McDowell would face Walker in the Republican primary. Walker previously served the 6th District in Congress, though at the time the district’s boundaries were farther north toward Rockingham and Guilford counties. In 2024, the district will include Davie, Davidson, Rowan and parts of Cabarrus, Guilford and Forsyth counties.
“While some of his fellow DC-Swamp Rats might think Mark Walker can’t be beaten, we’re gonna soon find out if the folks in NC-06 want a Career Politician who brags about serving in House leadership with Paul Ryan or if they want a fresh-faced fighter who is going to unapologetically champion the American First Agenda offered by President Donald Trump,” Jonathan Felts, McDowell’s senior advisor, said in a statement.
The 6th District is currently held by Rep. Kathy Manning, a Democrat from Greensboro, but state Republicans redrew the districts to give their party an advantage, and that meant drawing Manning’s district for a Republican to win. Manning announced this week she wouldn’t run.
McDowell will also face off against Bo Hines, a N.C. State football star who left the college to study politics at Yale University. Hines ran in 2022 and garnered Trump’s endorsement then, but lost the 13th Congressional District race to Rep. Wiley Nickel, a Democrat from Cary. Hines had hinted at a potential Trump endorsement on Tuesday.
High Point Mayor Jay Wagner, Green Beret Christian Castelli and plastic surgeon Mary Ann Contogiannis are also running for the seat.
This story was originally published December 13, 2023 at 5:15 PM with the headline "Trump makes surprise endorsement in NC — a candidate who hadn’t announced his campaign."
