Endorsements: Our choices in NC’s 2nd and 4th Congressional Districts

Court-ordered new redistricting maps untangled the extreme gerrymandering imposed by Republican state lawmakers and have rendered the two congressional districts that include Wake County favorable to Democrats.

Longtime Democratic Rep. David Price was safely ensconced in a Democrat-friendly 4th District before the changes, but the new lines have made a major difference in the 2nd District. The 2nd District’s previous boundaries included portions of Wake and five other counties, a design that helped Republican Rep. George Holding. But now the district is wholly contained within Wake County, the state’s most populous county and one that regularly votes Democratic. Holding reviewed the new district lines and announced he would not seek re-election.

The Democratic nominee in the 2nd District is Deborah Ross of Raleigh, a former state representative and her party’s nominee against incumbent U.S. Sen. Richard Burr in 2016. With Ross in Congress, Wake County would have a representative who knows its towns, its citizens and its issues.

Before entering state politics, Ross, 57, was state director and lead attorney for the American Civil Liberties Union of North Carolina. She went on to represent Raleigh in the state House for more than a decade. There, she worked to protect voting rights, promote mass transit and raise the minimum wage for state employees.

While progressive, Ross is also practical. Regarding the proposed Green New Deal, she prefers the more modest Clean Energy and Jobs Innovation Act recently approved by the House. “I want to do something that’s going to work and work as quickly as possible,” she told the Editorial Board. Regarding Medicare For All, she thinks it would be better to start by offering a public option for health insurance.

Ross’ Republican opponent, Alan Swain, 66, is a retired Army colonel. He moved to Raleigh in 2017 to help raise his grandchildren. He told the Editorial Board that Ross is “a formidable candidate” with whom he has enjoyed discussing the issues. He is a supporter of school choice, gun rights and tighter border security. He has worked at the Pentagon and as an executive officer to the White House drug czar under presidents Bill Clinton and George W. Bush. “I’d be a rookie congressman, but I do know D.C.,” he said.

We appreciate Swain’s engagement on the issues and offering 2nd District voters a choice, but we support the election of Deborah Ross with enthusiasm and high expectations.

Price, of Chapel Hill, went from being a Duke University professor to becoming the dean of North Carolina’s congressional delegation. He has represented the 4th District since 1987, except when a Republican surge in 1994 put him out of office. He handily won the seat back in 1996. The 4th District includes all of Durham, Orange, Granville and Franklin counties as well as parts of Wake, Chatham and Vance counties.

Price, 80, is chairman of the Transportation, Housing and Urban Development Appropriations Committee. If Democrats keep control of the House, take the Senate and have Joe Biden as president, Price could oversee a surge of investment in mass transit, including more support for a high-speed rail corridor from Raleigh to Richmond.

“I’m looking forward to being a part of a new majority, with a good president and Senate we can work with,” he told the Editorial Board. “This is a pretty exciting time.”

Price also is committed to addressing the national shortage of affordable housing and raising awareness of the need. “I have pledged myself to increasing housing funding,” he said. “It hasn’t always been up there with education and health care and it needs to be.”

Price’s Republican opponent is Robert Thomas, a residential real estate appraiser who lives in Durham. A first-time candidate, Thomas, 70, entered the race because he was bothered by Price’s and other House Democrats’ vote to impeach President Trump. He supports building a southern border wall because it will reduce human trafficking and allow the government to adjust how many low-skilled immigrants are admitted depending on the job market. “I’m not about shutting people out. I’m about controlling the flow,” Thomas told the Editorial Board.

Libertarian Jeff Matemu, an immigration attorney, is also running.

We strongly support the re-election of Rep. David Price.