Chris Cooper@chriscooperwcu
Aug 8
13 tweets
is a huge & (from my vantage point) unexpected development in the battle for the 
Tim Moffitt@TimMoffitt
Aug 08
View on Twitter
After careful consideration, I have decided not to seek the Republican nomination for North Carolina’s 11th Congressional District.
My responsibilities to my family and businesses would not allow me to commit to more than a few years in Congress. Western North Carolina deserves a representative who can give the full measure of time required, both day-to-day and over the long-term. Anything less would be unfair to the people of this district.
I am deeply grateful for the outpouring of support and encouragement I received over the past few days. Your confidence in me has been both humbling and meaningful, and I will not soon forget it.
I remain fully committed to serving the citizens of Senate District 48 and look forward to continuing that work on behalf of the communities I am proud to represent.
Thank you.
-Tim
Moffitt is a NC Senator and former NC House member who represented, at various times, Henderson, Polk, & Buncombe Counties (~50% of voters in NC 11)--a "quality challenger" by most metrics.
So, who else might be out there?
NC Senators Kevin Corbin (NC-50) & Warren Daniel (NC-46) have also said they're out. That leaves Ralph Hise (NC-47) as the only sitting Senator in #nc11 who has not (that I've seen--please correct me) weighed in.
If we look to the House, Anna Ferguson (NC-119) is brand new and seems extremely unlikely to put her name in that hat (& has not that I've heard), & Mark Pless (NC-118) recently lost his election, told @Bryan Anderson that he's out, & gave a hell of a good quote in the process.
Dudley Greene (NC-85) also represents part of NC 11 & has not weighed in that I am aware of.
Karl Gillespie (NC-120) seems like a strong possibility & someone worth watching.
Jennifer Balkom (NC-117) had previously said she was supporting Tim Moffitt, but with Moffitt out, could she be interested?
Jake Johnson (NC-113) represents part of NC 11 but does not live in the district. You don't have to live in a district to represent it in Congress so that doesn't preclude the possibility-but it might (?) make it less likely.
Of course, the ~60 member executive committee doesn't have to nominate a member of the #ncga.
& doing so would create headaches as their seats have to be filled with a whole other to replace them on the ballot.
So, who else is possible?
There are 15 1/2 counties in the district. All but one have Republican county commissioners--many of those folks might (?) be interested in a congressional run.
Then there are Republicans who have previously run for #nc11, lost, and are still involved in local politics--people like Ken McKim, Kristie Sluder, Christian Reagan Michele Woodhouse, & Adam Smith (who ran & lost to Chuck Edwards in the 2026 primary).
In the end, the speculation is fun, but probably not terribly predictive. After all, this isn't a traditional election but rather a meeting of ~60 people & that's assuming all of them make the trek to Asheville for a 6:30 Monday meeting.
We'll just have to wait and see.
Addendum: @Judge Bob Orr has come up with yet another possibility. After all, there's only one Republican who has represented #nc11 who still lives in district...
x.com/JudgeBobOrr/st
Judge Bob Orr@JudgeBobOrr
Aug 08
View on Twitter
Bring back Charlie Taylor. Hell, if Mitch McConnell can keep serving and Chuck Grassley run for reelection, there's no reason Charlie can't do it. @Chris Cooper
Johnson is out x.com/RepJakeJohnson
Jake Johnson@RepJakeJohnson
Aug 08
View on Twitter
Thank you to everyone who has reached out with words of encouragement regarding a potential run for the 11th Congressional District.
While I was born and raised in the district and have been proud to represent multiple counties within CD-11, I am currently one precinct outside of it under the current Congressional maps.
I look forward to continuing to serve the people of my district in the State House. I hope the CD-11 executive committee will nominate a candidate who will fight for the conservative values we hold dear in Western North Carolina. #CD11 #ncpol
Chris Cooper
@chriscooperwcu
Political Science Professor @wcu. Writes & teaches about U.S., state, & southern politics, elections, #ncpol, #nc11 . Sometimes 🚴♀️⛰️🎶. Usual disclaimer.
Missing some tweets in this thread? Or failed to load images or videos? You can try to .