3rd District Campaign

 

Smarter people than me keep mentioning a possible earthquake of a red-to-blue flip in NC Congressional District 3, where conservative urologist Greg Murphy is in his 4th term in Congress. (The DCCC has had its eye on the 3rd Dist. all year.) Murphy's a hardliner against abortion rights and once tweeted, “No one forces anyone to have sex,” in an online argument he was having with a liberal over the Dobbs decision, which threw abortion rights under the bus. Murphy later deleted the tweet.

The 3rd District encompasses much of eastern North Carolina, including Greenville, New Bern, Jacksonville, and the Outer Banks.

Raymond E. Smith Jr.

 

Murphy's opponent in November is Raymond E. Smith Jr. He's an impressive candidate on paper, a former member for two terms of the NC House representing Wayne and Sampson counties and a member at large of the Wayne County Board of Education. He likes to go by "Dr. Raymond E. Smith," displaying a degree he earned the hard way. He has a Doctorate in Education Leadership. Leadership and civic service run in his family. His father was a Marine and served with distinction, and his mother was herself an 18-year veteran on the School Board. Raymond Jr. is a decorated Gulf War combat veteran, former military policeman, and a statewide transportation planner for the NCDOT. 

He recently got a huge boost. The Congressional Black Caucus in DeeCee endorsed him, which means more than just money -- and the money ain't nothing to sneeze at -- for there's tactical support as well. “It means access to resources. It means that our base can be energized by the thought that they have a legitimate candidate in this race,” Smith said.

But fundraising for Smith has lagged. "GOP incumbent Greg Murphy is trouncing Democratic challenger Raymond Smith Jr. in #NC03 in money battle. Murphy raised $390K to Smith's $107K, and in terms of available cash Murphy entered July with $2.7 million to Smith's less than $74K" (Bryan Anderson tweet). 

Congressman Greg Murphy

 

The elections Smith has been in, starting at his homebase in Goldsboro:

2018 -- 1st election to NCH-21, took 52.65% of the vote.

2020 -- reelection, took 53%.

2022 -- did not run for reelection to NCH-21 but elected to run for NCS-4 in the Democratic primary against incumbent Democratic Senator Toby Fitch. Fitch got 54.5%; Smith, 45.5%.

2023 -- ran for Mayor of Goldsboro and lost by six votes. That's the kind of loss that can actually energize and count as a kind of moral win

Though he's well known in Goldsboro, he's attracted little media attention in places like Jacksonville and New Bern. Smith's Facebook presence is as stiff as his portrait on his website, so I can't tell how much energy his campaign has. Comes down to enthusiasm leading to volunteer boots on the ground to help with registration and voter contact. I don't see evidence, but I hope it's there.