CHARLOTTE – The State Board of Elections will announce the dates for the 9th District Special Election any time now. While former Republican candidate Mark Harris has bowed out, several other Republicans have at least dipped their toes in the water, and now there are rumblings that conservative state senator Dan Bishop (R-Mecklenburg) is prepared to make a serious run.

SCOOP: State Senator Dan Biship running for NC District 9 race for Congress. Planning to put at least $250,000 of his own money into the race.

— lynn wheeler (@mayorprotem) March 4, 2019

Dropping a quarter million bucks into the race should scare off a lot of would be contenders. The good news for the 9th district is that Bishop is a real conservative with a record of standing up to the Left and being an effective legislator. He was the primary author of House Bill 2 when Charlotte, which is in his district, penned ordinances to fine private businesses for daring to not accommodate men in women’s bathrooms.

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He is also the last remaining conservative in the Mecklenburg metropolitan area after the shellacking Republicans took in 2018. His success is proof positive that strong conservative stances earn strong support from the Republican base – most of those who fell to Democrats in 2018 in areas like Wake and Mecklenburg counties were moderates.

So if Bishop declares for the 9th with the ability to self-finance, as well as gain the support of area leaders, they may just be able to salvage what became a very messy situation over the last several months.