HICKORY, N.C. — North Carolina's 10th Congressional District will have a new seat holder for the first time in 20 years after the November election.
Patrick McHenry, the longtime Republican congressman for the district, announced in December 2023 that he would not seek reelection. This opened the door for new challengers to take the seat.
Four people will be on the November ballot for the district: Pat Harrigan (R), Ralph Scott Jr. (D), Todd Helm (Constitution), and Steven Feldman (L).
Whoever wins the seat could be in place to represent the district for an extended period of time. The last three congressmen to hold the seat have done so for at least 17 years each. McHenry has held the seat since he was elected in 2004.
The district will cover portions of Catawba, Forsyth, Iredell, Lincoln, and Yadkin counties beginning in 2025.
Pat Harrigan
Harrigan, a firearms manufacturing business owner and U.S. Army veteran, advanced to the November election by beating several challengers in the Republican primary. He initially was running for the 14th district, which includes Gastonia and Kings Mountain, but switched after McHenry dropped out.
Most of Harrigan's stances on his campaign website attack the Biden Administration's policies. Some of Harrigan's positions push for being "energy independent," investing in the military and securing the border. Harrigan is also against red flag laws for firearms. Former president Donald Trump has endorsed Harrigan, according to his website.
Harrigan was a Green Beret in the U.S. Army and served in Afghanistan. After he left the Army, he continued to build up his firearms manufacturing business.
Harrigan ran for the 14th district seat in 2022 but lost to democrat Jeff Jackson.
Ralph Scott Jr.
The sixth-great grandson of President James Madison is running as the Democrat candidate in this race. Scott is a U.S. Air Force veteran with no apparent political experience.
He won the Democratic nomination by default with no challengers. Scott's campaign website provides little information but he does note that he supports individual freedom, raising child tax deduction rates, and voting on individual rights such as abortion, gun control, and gerrymandering.
Scott posts often on X, voicing opposition to Trump and support for the Biden Administration.
If Scott wins, he would be the first Democrat to win the seat since Basil Whitener did so in the 1966 election.
Todd Helm
The Constitution Party nominated Helm for the District 10 seat. He is the CEO of Agricultural Development Initiatives, a nonprofit that serves to help people produce, consume, and market nutritious food. Helm has also worked as a high school math teacher.
Helm advocates for balancing the budget, fixing the immigration system, and pro-life ideals. Helm believes abortion and homosexuality are wrong, calling "LBGTQ" people a "sin."
Steven Feldman
The Libertarian Party nominated Dr. Steven Feldman, a dermatologist from Winston-Salem. He is in favor of reducing government debt, making a simpler tax system, and pulling the United States out of foreign wars.
If Helm or Feldman wins the seat, they will be the first non-Democratic or Republican candidate to win the seat since Abraham Recnher won as a Whig candidate in 1841 -- the district was dissolved from 1843 to 1903.
