Jim Neal channeled another first-time U.S. Senate candidate.

In a 10-minute speech Friday night at the Jefferson-Jackson Dinner, the Chapel Hill investment banker clearly hit on several favorite themes of former U.S. Sen. John Edwards, who, like him, came from nowhere to run for U.S. Senate. Neal is facing state Sen. Kay Hagan in the Democratic primary for the chance to take on Republican U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Dole.

Neal began by noting that his mother "grew up in a mill village," just as Edwards frequently noted that his father worked in a mill.

He then argued that people in North Carolina's rural communities are being left behind, feeling as though they are voiceless and "being left to die on the vine." He even borrowed a favorite statistic of Edwards', noting that one in four Americans "sleeping under a bridge" are veterans.

Neal ended his speech with a variation of Edwards' argument from his 2008 presidential campaign that the country didn't need to replace "corporate Republicans" with "corporate Democrats."

"The Democratic Party wins elections when we stand firm for our values. We win when we give the voters a clear contrast between our opponents in the Republican Party," he said.

"We lose elections when we run safe campaigns ... right down the middle of the playbook."

He added: "Now is the time to vote for what you want and not what you think you can get."

Neal's top rival, state Sen. Kay Hagan, looked past Neal and zeroed in on Elizabeth Dole.

"I've already got two things going for me versus Liddy Dole," she said. "First, I live in North Carolina. Second, my husband can vote for me."

Hagan argued that Dole has not been a good representative for North Carolina, ranking among the least effective senators in a recent survey. She then named a series of Dole's votes against raising the minimum wage, for cutting student loans and for giving tax breaks to oil companies.

"As I travel across this state, everybody can tell me who Elizabeth Dole is, but without exception they cannot name one thing that she's done for us here in North Carolina," she said.

Hagan didn't limit herself entirely to Dole, however. She also mentioned another former U.S. senator.

"I am so excited about this race, because I just know that this is the year that we are going to take back Jesse Helms' seat," she said.

Colleen Flanagan was wearing her ruby red slippers to the dinner.

Flanagan, the spokeswoman for Hagan's campaign, is continuing the campaign's theme of sending Dole "back to Kansas."

They are not knockoffs of Dorothy's shoes, but instead glittery red shoes with a bow and a 4-inch heel.

"I don't think Dorothy could handle heels like this," Flanagan said.

Flanagan was not alone. Hagan's campaign manager, Crystal King; political director and deputy campaign manager, Muthoni Wambu; scheduler, Forest Michaels; and field director, Leah Johnson all wore red shoes.

Hagan was wearing sensible footwear.

State judges may be nonpartisan in North Carolina.

But that doesn't mean a few weren't in the audience at the Jefferson-Jackson Dinner.

After N.C. Democratic Party Chairman Jerry Meek recognized the Democratic members of the Council of State, House Speaker Joe Hackney and various legislators, he gave a shout-out to state Supreme Court Justices Robin Hudson, Sarah Parker and Patricia Timmons-Goodson and state Appeals Court judges John Arrowood, Linda Stephens and Jim Wynn.

Meek told the crowd that he thought Friday night's event was the largest Jefferson-Jackson Dinner since it began in 1930.

A total of 5,000 people were in the audience, including 1,000 at tables on the floor of the Dorton Arena. (The rest were in the bleachers.)

At $125 a ticket for the nice seats and $25 for the bleachers, that works out to $225,000 in gross profits for the state Democratic Party.

No word yet on the cost of the event.