Attacking socialism and identity politics, Dan Forest kicks off campaign for governor
The Republican, in his second term as lieutenant governor, has long made it known that the governorship is in his sights, but he officially announced his intentions at a rally at the
He joins state Rep.
In a speech to supporters, Forest said he wanted to create a new vision for
He pitched his ticket around unifying
"We have a real problem in
While his roughly 10-minute speech touted his viewpoints against abortion rights, expanding school choice for North Carolinians and being more competitive on recruiting businesses to the state, the largest cheer Forest received was after he denounced socialism.
"Regardless of what
"We have a bit of a problem because a lot of our young people hear socialism and think it means social good," Forest said. "... But socialism is as far away from social good as you can get."
To unseat Cooper, Forest will likely have to win over the portion of voters that split their ticket between President
Many viewed McCrory's loss in 2016 as a repudiation of his support of House Bill 2, known as the "bathroom bill," which prohibited local governments from enacting anti-discrimination protections for LGBT people and required people in government facilities to use bathrooms matching the gender on their birth certificates.
At the same time as his rally, the
In an interview, Forest said he doesn't think he needs to have a specific message for those voters who went with Cooper last time. Rather, he said, he would be focused on building a message for the entire state.
"I think everyone wants to unify right now, not just in our state, but across the country," he said. "I think it's probably one of the biggest challenges that we face. The flames are just being stoked out there, and it is time to stop."
When asked what mistakes Cooper has made during his first term, Forest highlighted the breakdown of budget talks with the
Forest said Cooper hasn't shown a real desire to sit down with Republican leaders in the
"I think health care is a real issue, I don't think anyone denies that," Forest said. "I think we need to have a serious forum in our state to bring people together to ask what is the best way for
Forest added that he plans to roll out his own health care policy.
"I think we should develop a
On the "born alive" bill, which would have brought new penalties for medical professionals who allow abortion survivors to die, Forest said the law should have been passed.
"The governor said we just didn't need it," Forest said. "But my take is, if it is not needed, then go ahead and sign it and tell people you stand for life."
Forest's campaign highlighted anti-abortion viewpoints, indicating he will try to make the topic one of the main points of contention in the 2020 election.
While his speech did not directly mention Trump, he said his campaign was committed to supporting the president, who will likely visit the state often in 2020.
"We have been supporting the president all along," Forest said. "We think the president is popular because he has done what he has said he was going to do and he is delivering on his campaign promises. And I think people appreciate that."
This story was produced with financial support from a coalition of partners led by Innovate Raleigh as part of an independent journalism fellowship program. The N&O maintains full editorial control of the work. Learn more; go to bit.ly/newsinnovate
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