8-11-19

House election that was widely seen as a bellwether for the president's chances in the 2020 election.

Another Republican House candidate won a separate special election in a GOP-leaning district elsewhere in North Carolina earlier Tuesday evening -- frustrating Democrats who spent millions trying to make a splash in the state, only to come up far short.

The clean sweep heartened the president, who has long emphasized the national implications at stake. Trump unloaded on Bishop's Democratic opponent, Dan McCready, in a fiery rally on Monday night, telling attendees that "to stop the far-left, you must vote in tomorrow's special election."

That effort, Trump said late Tuesday, had clearly paid dividends.

"Dan Bishop was down 17 points 3 weeks ago," Trump wrote late Tuesday. "He then asked me for help, we changed his strategy together, and he ran a great race. Big Rally last night. Now it looks like he is going to win. @CNN &@MSNBC are moving their big studio equipment and to talent out. Stay tuned!"

He added: "BIG NIGHT FOR THE REPUBLICAN PARTY. CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL!"

With 99 percent of precincts reporting, Bishop led McCready by just over 4,100 votes (94,984 to 90,824) in the race to represent the GOP-leaning 9th Congressional District.

In 2018, the Republican candidate, Mark Harris, defeated McCready by a much smaller margin -- just 905 votes, 139,246 to 138,341.

 State officials ordered the unusual special election earlier this year, invalidating Harris' win after uncovering ballot fraud efforts.

“Congratulations to Dan Bishop on his definitive victory tonight in North Carolina’s 9th Congressional District," National Republican Congressional Committee Chairman Tom Emmer said in a statement.

"North Carolinians rejected the Democrats’ socialist agenda and elected a representative who will defend North Carolina values, and will always fight for freedom and against socialism. I look forward to working with Dan in Congress to hold the Democrats accountable for their extreme agenda.”

Bishop was boosted by pair of visits to the district Monday by both Trump and Vice President Mike Pence. Had McCready prevailed, it might have suggested GOP erosion and raised questions about Trump's and his party's viability for 2020.

But Trump projected confidence early Tuesday evening after Republican Greg Murphy was projected to soundly defeat Democrat Allen Thomas in a separate special election in the coastal 3rd District to succeed the late Rep. Walter Jones Jr.

"One down, one to go," Trump wrote on Twitter.

Analysts had warned that the fraud scandal could have harmed Bishop's prospects because of his association with the Republican Party, even though he wasn't involved in the alleged ballot fraud in last year's race.

On the eve of the elections, Trump and Pence threw their full-throated support behind Bishop and Murphy. But they spent extra time boosting Bishop, whose race was projected to be far tighter.

The president specifically McCready as a dangerous proponent of "sanctuary cities" and rolling back gun rights.

"Just recently, Mecklenburg County set free an illegal alien charged with first-degree rape and crimes against a child," Trump said, his voice rising. "Support for sanctuary cities is disloyalty to American cities -- and McCready wants sanctuary cities, with all of their protections for people who are serious criminals. Tomorrow is your chance to send a clear message to the America-hating left."

Meanwhile, McCready, a former Marine turned financier of solar energy projects, had banked on the district's suburban moderates to carry him over the top.

The House district stretches east from the prosperous Charlotte suburbs into rural areas hugging the South Carolina border.

The district has been held by the GOP since 1963. In 2016, Trump won the district by 11 percentage points.

A new balloting controversy surfaced during the day when North Carolina election officials did not act on a request by the state Republican Party to extend hours at a single precinct.

The state GOP asked that the voting site stay open an extra hour and 45 minutes because they said some 9th Congressional District voters were showing up at the old voting location in Union County, a Republican-heavy area east of Charlotte.

The State Board of Elections met and discussed the GOP request, but took no action.

However, by a 5-0 vote of the state board, one polling site in Mecklenberg County was kept open 25 minutes past the 7:30 p.m. ET closing time due to a reported gas leak.

Before leaving Washington for the rally on Monday, Trump dismissed questions of whether a poor result for the Republican candidate would serve as a warning sign for 2020.

"No, I don't see it as a bellwether," Trump said.

The 3rd District, where Murphy won easily early in the night, was less closely watched because it was strongly expected to stay Republican-controlled. Still, Republicans from the president on down sounded the victory drums.

“Congratulations to Dr.

Greg Murphy on his decisive victory tonight in North Carolina’s 3rd Congressional District," Emmer said in a statement.

 

"Dr. Murphy is a selfless servant who is dedicated to conservative values," Emmer continued. "Today, North Carolinians rejected the socialist agenda of the Democrats and voted for freedom. I look forward to working with a consistent conservative like Dr. Murphy in Congress.”

The district extends from the Virginia border and Outer Banks to the Marine Corps' Camp Lejeune, and inland to Greenville. Trump won the district vote comfortably in 2016, and Murphy said at a Trump rally that he would have the "president's back" if elected.

Thomas is a former Greenville mayor who questioned Murphy's "blind loyalty" to Trump.

Fox News' David Lewkowictz and The Associated Press contributing to this report.

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