WINSTON-SALEM -- Democratic Senate candidates generally agreed on the issues, but offered sharply different styles and points of emphasis Monday in their first forum leading up to the primary May 4.
Former state Sen. Cal Cunningham of Lexington placed the most emphasis on jobs and the economy, noting that he had offered a series of tax and trade proposals designed to help with the recovery.
"The defining issue in this campaign is jobs," Cunningham told about 150 Democratic activists at Winston-Salem State University on Monday evening.
Ken Lewis, a Chapel Hill lawyer, cast his Senate bid as an extension of President Barack Obama's 2008 presidential campaign, promising to help bring about the change in such areas as health care and climate change that had been promised two years ago.
It is not enough, Lewis said, to just defeat Republican Sen. Richard Burr.
"We need someone to go to the U.S. Senate to bring about the change that we seek," he said. "To win, we need a candidate who can inspire thecoalition that came together in 2008."
Secretary of State Elaine Marshall had a touch of populism in her speech, promising to go to Washington to battle "insurance companies, lobbyists and crooks," the same groups that she faced as a state regulator. "We need leaders who will stand up to the status quo and take on the tough challenges," she said.
The forum, sponsored by the state Democratic Party, was not a debate. Each candidate was allowed to make a statement, but the candidates were not allowed to criticize one another and there was no opportunity for any exchange among the candidates.
Meanwhile, Lewis and Cunningham announced endorsements Monday.
Lewis won the support of U.S. Rep. Mel Watt of Charlotte, a development that will likely add credibility to his courtship of black voters. At a news conference in Winston-Salem, Watt cited both his friendship with Lewis and a fresh approach to the Senate.
"Ken Lewis will bring new and diverse ideas and perspectives to public discussions, something that's sorely needed in the public discourse and something that's sorely needed in the United States Senate," Watt said in a statement. "The fact that Ken Lewis has not served in political office is, in my view, a benefit and not a shortcoming."
Lewis has been endorsed by both of North Carolina's black congressmen, Watt and G.K. Butterfield of Wilson. Watt has broad contacts as the former chairman of the Congressional Black Caucus and as the manager of former Charlotte Mayor Harvey Gantt's 1990 Senate campaign. As a young Charlotte lawyer, Lewis volunteered in the Gantt campaign.
African-Americans could cast 30 percent or more of the Democratic votes in the primary.
Cunningham released a list of more than 300 women who are backing his candidacy.
"I am excited to join this diverse group of women to support Cal," said Rep. Pricey Harrison of Greensboro, "because he has not only been an outspoken supporter for several issues that affect women - he has taken action to address many of these issues."
Among the women who endorsed Cunningham are: state Rep. Lorene Coates of Salisbury; Liz Hair, former chairwoman of the Mecklenburg County Board of Commissioners; and Nina Szlosberg-Landis, a member of the state Board of Transportation from Raleigh.
