Between the machine shop he is trying to start and the fledgling organic farm he's working on, the former college economics major says he is working 12-hour days and barely has time to squeeze in telephone calls.

Still, he's concerned enough about the economy and what he calls the "mortgage meltdown" to run for Congress, taking on incumbent Brad Miller in the 13th Congressional District's Democratic primary May 6. His platform? An economic plan known as "monetizing wealth."

Miller, too, worries about the economy. He thinks the government caters to powerful interests at the expense of working-class families, a trend he says has led to the escalation in housing foreclosures.

And so pocketbook issues may, for now, dominate Democratic political chatter in the 13th District, which spans most of four counties on the Virginia border, from Rockingham to Granville, and dips down into Greensboro, Burlington and Raleigh.

The primary race comes as polls show that the majority of voters rank economic issues as their top concern this year. Within the 13th District, counties such as Caswell and Person have some of the state's highest unemployment rates.

Granville Democratic chairman Frank Strickland said voters are thinking about their pocketbooks.

"What they're looking for right now is jobs," Strickland said. "They are concerned about the economy."

Strickland said he thinks Miller has done "a heck of a job" in Congress. He had never heard of Hafner, the Democratic challenger, who lives in Granville County.

Hafner, 63, has never before run for elected office. He said that he had thought about it for years, but that the growing financial crisis worried him enough to file for the job.

"We are in bad enough shape that people are going to start to listen," Hafner said. "I've been running my mouth like this for 20 or 30 years. I think now we have an attentive audience."

Hafner's Web site is full of detailed economic theory, much of it about the control of the federal monetary system. He says the United States has based too much of its economy on a debt system.

Instead, he said, the country ought to focus on monetizing wealth - using cash instead of debt to buy goods and services.

Hafner also has been overwhelmed with his own work trying to start up two businesses.

"I am so incredibly busy," Hafner said. "I have more work every day than I can get done in two months."

On other issues, Hafner opposes the war in Iraq and wants to repeal the Patriot Act as unconstitutional. He thinks the nation's overseas military bases amount to imperialism; he would bring all troops home to protect American soil. He also thinks federal involvement in health care is unconstitutional.

On local issues, Hafner is opposed to the bio-agricultural lab that the federal Department of Homeland Security is considering building in Butner. The Level 4 lab would research animal diseases such as anthrax and Ebola.

Miller has expressed support for the lab in the past but says he will support the opinions of local residents and governments about the laboratory.

Like Hafner, Miller sees the tumbling economy as a main issue in the race, focusing mainly on working-class families.

"The economy of this district is going through a tough transition," Miller said.

Miller, 54, has spent years in Congress trying to shape federal legislation on predatory lending and to help bail out homeowners affected by rising foreclosure rates. His greatest frustration, Miller said, is that the work has not yet resulted in new law.

Still, Miller said he is proud of his work as chairman of the House subcommittee on science oversight. In that role he has led investigations into the suppression of a NASA study on airline safety, of chemical plants in Ohio and of formaldehyde-laced FEMA trailers housing poor families after Hurricane Katrina.

Miller said he wants to continue that work in Congress.

"I don't see anything that is available to me in which I can have as much influence as I am having now," Miller said.

The winner of the Democratic primary faces Republican Hugh Webster, a former state senator, in the general election in November.

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