CHARLOTTE, N.C. _ Democrat Dan McCready kicked off his campaign for a new 9th Congressional District election Friday, saying the people of the district need representation.
McCready spoke to supporters in Waxhaw a day after the North Carolina State Board of Elections ordered a new election after a four-day hearing that detailed election fraud in Bladen County.
The board's decision came shortly after Republican Mark Harris stunned the hearing with his own call for a new election, after insisting for weeks that he won the election and should be certified. Harris led McCready by 905 votes after Election Day.
At the hearing, Harris testified that he believed Bladen County political operative McCrae Dowless that his absentee ballot program was legitimate. Testimony from other witnesses showed that Dowless was at the center of what election officials described as a "coordinated, unlawful, and substantially resourced absentee ballot scheme."
Asked whether Harris has disqualified himself from the election, McCready said, "That's a question for the people to decide. I think he's going to need a few days."
Harris could not be reached Friday.
Speaking to supporters, McCready said, "Together, we are going to knock on every door. We are going to talk to people about putting our country before party."
Harris and McCready both began running in mid-2017.
"Some people are saying this is the longest campaign they've ever seen," McCready said. "Let's go do this thing."
