The money faucet is open in the race to represent Western North Carolina’s 11th Congressional District. Republican candidate Madison Cawthorn has raised more than Democratic candidate Moe Davis, but Cawthorn’s campaign has also spent heavily to bring those dollars in. As of Sept. 30, Davis had more cash on hand than his opponent.
The effort to secure compensation for Swain County from the federal government for a road it never completed has been a long and twisted tale, full of contentious political debate among Western North Carolina congressmen both old and new. The issue is now back in the news, as current GOP Rep. Mark Meadows has joined […]
In the President’s State of the Union speech, he masterfully called America to rally to the vision of inclusiveness and fairness he has sought to implement through his presidency. Despite shrill Republican propaganda to the contrary, Obama has accomplished saving the country from complete financial meltdown, even over the unbridled and, at times, irrational opposition […]
Democrat Hayden Rogers, the longtime chief of staff to Rep. Heath Shuler, announced Feb. 8 that he plans to run for congress, hoping to gain the 11th District seat currently held by his boss.
Interstate 40 was cleared, Asheville City Council retreated, the downtown Bank of America closed up, the role of religion was fiercely debated at the Buncombe County Board of Education, Shuler bowed out, the city looked at restricting newspaper boxes, Council headed to East Asheville, and a deal over the Occupy Asheville camp remained out of reach. Whew. It was a busy, busy news week in Asheville.
After denying speculation for months that he wouldn’t seek re-election to Congress, Democratic Rep. Heath Shuler (NC11) reversed course Feb. 1 and announced that he will retire from the office when his current term ends in January. *This post was updated Feb. 2 with a video of Democrat Cecil Bothwell responding to the news. With Shuler out of the race, Bothwell is currently the only Democrat contending for the seat.*
State legislators and activists came together in a Biltmore Forest home last night, Dec. 8, to build support for redistricting reform in North Carolina.
An email sent out by the National Republican Congressional Committee targets 11th District Rep. Heath Shuler, blaming the Haywood County Democrat for what seems to be the impending failure of the bipartisian “Super Committee” to endorse a plan to cut the deficit. Although Shuler wasn’t on the committee, the national effort could be the opening salvo in its effort to soften his support and unseat him next year.
Rep. Patrick McHenry held his first public event in Asheville since the General Assembly redrew congressional districts to put most of the city in his 10th District, introducing himself to the Council of Independent Business Owners at the group’s Nov. 10 luncheon.
About 30 people gathered outside the downtown Asheville Post Office Sept. 27 to rally against possible cuts to the U.S. Postal Service and the local facility. Photo by Jonathan Welch
As Congressman Heath Shuler stood behind the podium yesterday, Aug. 25, at a luncheon sponsored by the Council of Independent Business Owners, he used a story to explain the biggest challenge he sees in Washington: finding compromise for the federal budget regardless of politics.
‘Tis the season when our congressmen visit their constituents, and business issues seem to be on their minds: On Thursday, Aug. 18, Rep. Heath Shuler will tour Kearfott Corporation’s Motion System Division in Black Mountain. Sen. Richard Burr was scheduled to visit Thermo Fisher Scientific in Asheville the same day, but canceled.
The first Republican-controlled General Assembly in 140 years ratified controversial voter districts July 28 that split Asheville and Buncombe County in ways that are likely to benefit GOP candidates.
The GOP’s controversial congressional redistricting proposal passed the North Carolina Senate along party lines July 25. The plan shifts almost all of Asheville’s reliably Democratic voters from the 11th District, currently represented by Democrat Heath Shuler, to the conservative 10th, presently the domain of Republican Patrick McHenry.
Take a tour of the controversial proposed dividing line between North Carolina’s 10th and 11th Congressional Districts with Xpress reporters Jake Frankel and David Forbes. The proposed line would divide Asheville, placing most of the city in the 10th District (currently represented by Republican Patrick McHenry of Hickory), while leaving some portions in Democrat Heath Shuler’s 11th District.
The latest congressional district proposal from the General Assembly strips more of Buncombe County from its longtime home in the 11th – currently represented by Democrat Heath Shuler — and puts it in the 10th – currently represented by Republican Patrick McHenry.
In this edition of Local Matters—the Xpress weekly news podcast—reporter David Forbes talks about the recent removal of newspaper boxes by the County and the recent announcement of candidates for Asheville City Council, and reporters Christopher George and Jake Frankel talk about the heated meetings around the new congressional redistricting plan. Hosted by News Editor Margaret Williams.
Tony Basilio, host of the The Edge radio program on WVLZ radio in Knoxville, TN, is reporting that Western North Carolina Rep. Heath Shuler is considering taking a job as the athletic director of the University of Tennessee in Knoxville, where he gained national attention as a top quarterback in the early 1990s. What do you think? Does this seem like a job that Rep. Shuler would potentially leave his congressional seat for?
About 50 people packed two small rooms at UNCA for an April 30 public hearing on redistricting.
Photo by Jonathan Welch
After initially declaring he would run against Rep. Heath Shuler as an independent candidate, Asheville City Council member Cecil Bothwell has again changed course. Campaign materials released on his website yesterday revealed he will run against Shuler in the Democratic primary, and an announcement this morning made it official.
Earlier this week, the U.S. House of Representatives voted on what could best be called the "Dirty Air Act" — legislation that would permanently allow our nation’s biggest polluters to dump unlimited amounts of carbon pollution into our air. Although the bill gained enough votes to pass in the House, I am pleased that our […]
