Why his brand of belief is increasingly constrained to the older, white, backward-looking segment of our population - as opposed to the demographic that is the new majority and whose share continues its inexorable increase. Congress should refuse to seat anyone coming out of this cesspool.
2
In all fairness, shouldn't his recent opponent be seated in Congress?
1
Another Evangelical who believes that honesty, integrity, and morality doesn't count for them. They preach it but ignore it in life. Anything is permitted if you're doing the work of god.
1
Waiting for Trump's tweet on voter fraud and how we should lock him up...the silence is deafening.
66
@BMD it was election fraud, not voter fraud. But I do agree; the only thing I’m hearing from Trump is crickets.
2
What a despicable man. He was still going to run after he was found to be guilty of fraud. Why not just give the vote to the other candidate in the original vote? What a waste of money.
11
".....two recent strokes and issues with his memory and recall...." Translation - "He lied."
7
As an evangelical minister, he surprises no one with his dodgy conduct, then his dodge when caught. The last recommendation for political life is a life as or associated with religion. Sarah Huckabee, daughter of Mike and a false witness if there ever was one, knows nothing of the Tenth Commandment.
4
Fraud! Fraud! Fraud! That was the cry of the Republicans in NC (and in the rest of the country) to justify those supress the vote laws. Well, guest which party was caught with his hand in the cookie jar?
4
As a former member of this district I welcome Harris's withdrawal. Sympathies for his health issues, aside from that his awful anti gay record was a non starter for me before he even ran.
Good Riddance!
2
One must ask the NC election board why on earth McCready is having to fork over more money and time for a new election when the obvious question is why he is not instead being declared the winner by default, due to the ballot fraud, committed by his opponent and his hired political henchmen.
Last time I checked, ballot fraud, tampering, is a federal offense (1971) and punishable by both prison time and/or large fines.
Meanwhile, NC's 9th district continues to have zero representation. What a shame.
10
Suddenly this guy is too unhealthy. Really?
6
Should Trump reconvene his moronic task force?
5
Note to McReady. Forget about reminding voters too strenuously about the past. They get it. Sell yourself. Take the high road and don’t overplay your hand.
4
something like 99% of US criminals and murders are republican, gun rights supporter, Christians. Could that be a pattern?
4
He should be fully investigated and tried. Set an example so that others don’t try this. Lock him up if he has committed a crime, which sure seems likely!
4
She should be arrested.
2
It would be nice if the GOP lived completely separate lives from normal people. There view of public service like there fake religion is off the rails. Harris like the rest of the GOP are all on a cable tv show they write the nonsense scripts and act the appropriate roles.
They lie about everything. The mans son is crying with his testimony, and there is no realization how he hurt his family,
The Big con man who is always on a tv show is in Viet Nam wouldn’t fight on the war but now he is kissing up to a dictator who murders his people, Thd commander in charge is an
embarrassment to God and America.
God save us because our GOP politicians won’t.
Mr. Harris wants to spend more time with his family.
1
Why isn't this lying evangelical preacher being charged with election tampering? Or is he given a pass because he's a preacher and just had two strokes?
5
@Stephen
He's given a pass because he's a republican.
''. . .medical issues that included two recent strokes and issues with his memory and recall, . . .''
Did these medical issues develop SINCE the election?
1
Harris should be criminally charged. Period.
6
This helps explain the Republican obsession with voter fraud. Because they are engaged in it regularly, they think everyone is doing it.
I am ashamed to be living in this corrupt state with horribly gerrymandered districts and a Republican legislature that constantly subverts the will of the people.
10
And the good lord said....thou shalt not lie...thefore the good lord said this campaign was a lie. As punishment the good lord hath stricken thee with a couple of heart attacks. And the good lord said anybody that attaches thy wagon to Trump will live in misery until the next election. Amen.
7
Hear that sound? That’s the sound of the GOP thinking up new ways to cheat.
11
If you know what’s good for you and this state the last person anyone should vote for is someone backed by Harris. As if!
6
This is what the GOP has become. All fraud. All levels.
12
Who knew? When Republicans ranted about election fraud, they knew what they were talking about - they just didn't share the whole truth with the rest of us.
13
Harris shouldn't even be allowed to run for reelection; he should be tried for election fraud, and if convicted, then be frogmarched straight to jail.
6
An embarrassment to America, an embarrassment to Christianity, an embarrassment to his family. An embarrassment.
8
Lest there be any doubt about the deep and pervasive corruption in the GOP in North Carolina, recall the botched bathroom bill and loss of millions in tourist and convention dollars; the late-night chicanery by the legislature to reduce the power of the elected governor, a Democrat; the cover up of the Duke Energy ecological catastrophe of coal ash pollution of the Dan River, and the list goes on. The GOP in NC has shown itself to be venal, mean-spirited and deeply morally corrupt. In this most recent instance it got caught and will pay a price of losing a seat in Washington... until the next time it rigs an election and gets away with it.
24
@PMIGuy
RIGHT ON!
What is holding up the court ordered NC redistricting due to generous gerrymandering? or are they waiting for the new census figures to come out in three years time?
2
Why should there be another election? The candidate who came second should be declared the winner.
21
I was reading some of our comments and came to an obvious realization of how bad the government has become. It’s probably been said in a hundred different ways. We tell each other we need to get mad and angry and fight for what this country was about, should be. Why that all is holy are the Congress not doing this? This, this very thing, our well-being, our safety, our quality of life depends on them. Doesn’t it?! This is real, and it’s sad. We are at a precipice and we are going over. When are they going to listen? Not follow an agenda they made up to benefit themselves. You hold back and bad things happen, and happen and happen. This government no longer works.
8
@Elly
Sadly, I think it's because there are too many in Congress who value party over integrity. Mitch McConnell and his buddies in both Houses had many opportunities to step in and investigate issues like this, but were more interested in maintaining the GOP's power....
10
Meanwhile, NC 9th District remains unrepresented. With the closeness of the race fixed by Republican interests, you should expect the Democrat to be awarded the position. Sounds like even the board is fixed.
14
There are others besides Harris who should be going down for this kerfuffle. It exposes systematic voter fraud by NC Republicans who remain in power. There will be no justice for citizens who had their vote stolen until these authorities (including state prosecutors who failed to investigate Dowless despite repeated requests are exposed and run out of government. I anticipate that NC Republicans will try to make Dowless the scapegoat and I hope they fail. After all this time doing what he does, Dowless must know a lot about the underbelly of NC politics. Federal authorities should be finding out everything he knows.
15
What amazes me is how it was even an option that Harris was about to be allowed to run again. That's the NC Board of Elections basically saying, not only is it okay if you cheat, it's okay if you get CAUGHT cheating, as long as you act like you're sorry (that you got caught). Harris didn't come forward with any of this when he won. This all came out AFTER a thorough investigation, when he had no other option and even his son was testifying against him.
One thing Republicans do have on Democrats is focused and committed attacks. If this had been a Democrat caught up in all of this, every Republican in the country would have tweeted about it, there would be commissions and laws and constitutional amendments drawn up. Republicans were better at being outraged at fraud even when there was NO EVIDENCE of fraud. It shouldn't have mattered that his health was bad. He should have never been allowed to run in another public election.
25
@Bryan Maxwell
There would have been pitchforks, tiki torches and paid crisis actors (ref: Bush v. Gore, 2000).
2
So how much does Harris walk away with in terms of pension and lifetime benefits? I wish NYT and other news media would include this info in reporting retirements and walk-aways, especially the controversial or under-pressure ones. The public has no idea of the golden parachutes House members and Senators get, even after relatively short time in office.
8
So if you cheat and win a New North Carolina election, but get caught at it, your party doesn't lose the election, they get a do over. Now that is fair and balanced.
That's the same logic as your campaign chairman gives a KGB guy democratic party polling data, but there is still no collusion between your campaign and that foreign government. Nothing to see here move along.
MAGA and the GOP have always stood for rigorous intellectual thought.
11
@Son Of Liberty Rigorous intellectual thought? HA! The name of the game is Power&Money! (Thinking is for eggheads.)
No tweet from Donald? I'm shocked. Evangelicals and republicans alike have no shame. It's no wonder why they are in bed together.
23
McConnell is now managing to blame NC Democrats for this travesty. Apparently there is only one flavor of election/voter fraud- Democratic. When Republicans do it (which happens frequently) it’s just God’s work. Pastor Harris should be indicted for at least two felonies and McCready should be declared the winner. That will happen in NC when pigs fly.
33
Strokes? Yeah, right. How convenient. Don’t go away mad...
8
We need a law that says that if an election is tainted by fraud and cannot be decided but must be redone, that it is redone involving only the original candidates. So the new ballot should be Harris vs. McCready, a cheater vs. McCready, an unfit candidate vs. McCready. And if Harris takes himself out, the ballot should still stand — McCready vs. someone who can't or won't serve if he wins. I mean, if the Republicans can substitute in a new candidate for their party, then can any new candidate from any party (Independent, Green, Libertarian, Constitution, Patriot, Unity, Labor, Reform, whatever) jump in at this point as though the original election never took place? And why should Republican party officials now get to decide for the people of the 9th district who the R candidate will be? Shouldn't anyone who wants to run as the new Republican candidate (perhaps someone who just changed their affiliation for D to R) have the right to run in a party primary to see if they should represent the party in the new election? I mean, c'mon! This is idiotic. Send McCready to Congress!
13
So ticked off about the old GOP lies regarding vote fraud. The GOP commits fraud and not a peep nationally. Push the story under the rug.
If it was easy to cheat before 2018 rest assured the GOP will cheat in 2019. Anything to keep a white male in power! No lessons learned!
12
The South will NOT rise again...unless they vote all republicans out. If you are a working class man or woman and still think Graham, Uncle Mitch, etc have your back, wake up. You’ve been had.
33
Harris endorsed a total right wing nut, even more nutty than the preacher. There’s a picture of the guy in a Boss Hogg outfit with his shotgun, supporting our God given right to tote guns to the terror of the people. Scary thing is, that is the kind of guy who gets elected in our gerrymandered districts.
16
Not only should those involved in this disgraceful, illegal mess that one of our most important rights was abused be prosecuted but they should be made an example of so that the fear of jail and financial ruin makes them think twice in the future.
9
>>Mr. Harris said he would support Stony Rushing, a commissioner from Union County, for the Republican nomination.
Harris is a failed candidate, who perjured himself under oath and appear blatantly guilty of purposely hiring someone to commit election fraud.
I don't think an endorsement from him is really the sort of boost that Rushing needs.
11
@Tim Marks
I think you miss a point; the republican voters in Union County would vote for Attila the Hun before they would vote for a democrat, so it really doesn't matter about endorsements.
1
Mr Harris should have been disqualified for not only the voter fraud his son was willing to call out, but also for the egregious, politically cynical haircut he chose to present voters with the only real reason for their votes. American who are registered to cast their votes seem, more often than not, to chose a candidate who looks the part somehow, a TV-ready coif with gray at the temples for that look of wisdom. That alone will get more candidates elected, even wearing a prison uniform while sporting this coif of courage
4
Lock him up! Cheating is how Republicans win in the world of dying white influence. Playing fairly is not in their playbook. Would that they be handed an unprecedented catastrophic defeat in 2020! Enough is enough.
20
A candidate cheated in an election. He withdraws, and his party gets to pick a replacement? It seems it would be fairer to do as they do in other competitions; give the second place finisher the gold medal. Simple, fast, cheap. It is also fair because it includes a punishment for the party that was unwise enough to put the candidate forward for election.
17
“Stroke” seems like an early defense to felony charges......
4
It would be hard to represent your district behind bars.
4
Dan McCready should be awarded the seat and Harris should spend the rest of his life in jail. No do over!
16
Republicans were right about election fraud; they were the ones committing it.
12
“I’ve come to realize over the course of the last couple of months that what we’re up against is politicians who put themselves before the people they’re supposed to serve, ... ”
Yeah. AND? That is standard operation philosophy for the overwhelming majority of all politicians in the US. Get elected and stay in office at whatever cost. Sell your soul to the Devil, billionaire contributors or the NRA, whatever it takes.
Mr. Harris may be sorry, but he's sorry he got caught, not that he did anything out of the ordinary or wrong. Mr. Dowless Jr. has allegedly been selling his vote collection services for years to Democrats or Republicans, whoever will pay. One might be tempted to blame Republicans since they are the ones that got caught. However, they do need to just plain stop pointing fingers at the totally unproven claims of Democratic voter fraud and look in a mirror.
9
Why isn't he in jail already? Subverting the democratic process as he did is tantamount to treason. Last I heard, that's still punishable by death.
7
Why isn't Harris in jail right now? It has been proven and there is clear evidence his campaign defrauded voters of NC to win an election, what more does it take?
21
In North Carolina's District 9, it took two months for the Board of Elections to prove that Harris's campaign had engaged in election tampering. The key to their investigation was Harris's statements. In DC, they've been investigating tampering for two years now and we still don't have an answer. Why the heck hasn't Trump been required to give a statement, too?
12
Harris' evangelical veil shields him from the ugliness of his lies, in a time and place where the GOP super-majority passes whatever laws protect their own. Of course, McCready should be declared the winner. The absurdity is that instead informed voters will again contribute to his campaign in desperation, fork up 500,000 for another election, and have to swallow their frustration. Where is the outrage?
16
If only his decision not to run was driven by conscience and contrition. But of course it's driven solely by political concerns - remove himself as the lightening rod he would be, and the risk he would pose to retaining the seat for Republicans.
Is it not clear yet Americans how corrupt Republicans have become, and how they will stop at nothing to gain and retain power? They have not one shred of concern for the well being of Americans, nor any intention of upholding their sworn duty to protect and defend the Constitution and the U.S. The G.O.P. - Greed Over People Party - needs to go the way of the Whigs. They are a scourge on our democracy.
Harris needs to be indicted, tried, and sent to prison for his crimes, but of course he won't because those in power will intercede. I wold cry "Shame" on all of them, but they don't know the meaning of the word.
21
The Republican party candidate cheated in this election and has disqualified himself from serving. Why does the Democratic candidate have to run against another Republican — including paying to run a a second campaign — in order to take the seat? After Mitch McConnell stole a Supreme Court seat from the American people (remember, he didn't steal from Obama, he stole it from us), how many more elections and appointments are we going to allow these thieves to steal?
22
All the analysis of decades of election data said that there was almost no election fraud, but the Republicans always disputed this. Well, they were right all along, and they were the ones perpetrating the election fraud. This makes perfect sense since for decades they have been the experts in voter suppression of black and brown peoples. Stand tall MAGA republicans, for this is your rich legacy.
14
Great comment.
3
I live in the 9th district and I am an Independent. This info about Mr. Rushing, who Mr. Harris endorsed, from the Charlotte Observer: " He owns Take Aim Training Range, a store that offers classes and sells firearms. He and his wife founded the 50-acre facility just across the border in South Carolina in 2008.
On Saturday, Rushing posted a meme on his Facebook page of black text under an American flag: “Dan McCready and his establishment friends just threw ALL of our ballots in the Trash! What are We Going to Do About IT?
“I’m just really concerned that we’re having an election stolen without any strong evidence of wrongdoing,” he told the Observer Tuesday."
I thought this tale could not get any stranger but the statement that Democrats and McCready stole the election is beyond belief. I am saddened that we live in a world where folks running for office (or holding office) distort the facts into an unrecognizable alternate universe. Harris's final act, to endorse Mr. Rushing, seems fitting. I hoped the Republicans could come up with something better but then I read this:
"In his statement, Hayes, the GOP chairman, wrote: “A word to Dan McCready and his Democrat allies: You did not get more legal votes and there are no free lunches in politics. You will be held responsible for the extreme positions your Party has taken and your role to erase more than 283,000 legal votes by citizens of the Ninth Congressional District.”
What a world! What a world!
16
Where is the outrage. What will you in Nc do? If another cycle is bore out of Republican outright alt universe happens again we are all in jeopardy of losing the value of the truth. Terrible.
4
That’s like upside-down land.
2
@Carol
I will knock on doors in the 9th district on behalf of Dan McCready. I will vote. I will encourage others to vote.
Outrage feeds the divisive political machine; talking to people and taking action is the only path to change.
3
Recently a Texas mother-of-four was sentenced to 8 years in prion for mistakenly voting one time. GOP authorities are showing no mercy.
Harris should get 20 years.
26
@Norwester
But the woman wasn't white so the GOP doesn't care about her or her children.
4
He's a pastor who lied to a state board and ran a crooked campaign.
Now he can return to his pulpit and call god's wrath on all those who have sinned according to some conveniently flexible definition.
15
Harris would be running against the scandal not the other candidate and he could not win. There was enough evidence presented to show that he knew that the man hired by his campaign could be a crook and should not hire him but he did anyway. He was going to run without the support of the Republican Party, most likely. So he had little choice but to bow out.
5
That doesn't give him a pass on prosecution for election fraud. It was though no fault of his own that the scheme failed.
5
Harris declaration that there be a new election was out of character and felt wrong. I think he saw himself eventually getting implicated in the fraud and is trying to avoid that. Ditto him not running again. I hope the investigation continues the people need to know who did what here.
7
His first comment morning after his son testified was “ thats is his opinion”. That lasted two hours until the state bye about noon time ordered a new election.
1
His health was just fine when he was figuring out a way to make sure 1000s of votes wouldn’t be counted. But when the bright lights of an investigation were aimed at his campaign, his health suddenly evaporated. Quite the medical mystery.
19
Its the “go to” excuse when people are found out! No one has the strength of character to admit when they have committed a crime, when they have shamed themselves, cheated the citizens of this country. Also another is I’m doing it for my family, to spend time with them. Most rings falsely.
6
Harris should be barred from politics, forever. The GOP should be required to forfeit this election.
13
No evidence of any cheating in the primary, but supposedly that has to be redone as well to select a new candidate? If one candidate bows out of a general election after the primaries have selected the general election candidates, how is it that the Republicans get to choose another candidate? Is NC trying to create incentives for the parties to cheat? Because they have done an excellent job with this precedent.
10
I look forward to the day when a serious President, backed by a serious Congress, will pass and then enforce a serious voting rights bill. "Enough" might pretty well be along the lines of the one the Supreme Court voted was no longer necessary. The challenge was brought by Republicans claiming that closing predominantly black polling places, disenfranchising black voters, were all things of the past. Along the lines of, "if the disease is better, stop taking the medicine that cured it".
This is an epoch for the US that I wish I did not have to live through.
7
What’s interesting is that an amendment to require voter ID was also on that ballot. The NC Election Board found that, out of nearly 5 million votes cast in 2016, there was only one fraudulent vote that would have been prevented if ID had been required.
So NC Republicans are spending a ton of money and resources trying to get voter ID through in order to prevent one fraudulent vote. Meanwhile, a single Republican “pastor” stole some 1,000 votes.
18
I would love to see a full throated defense of democracy coming from both parties. The parties should easily be able to agree on easy voter registration, non-partisan districting, weekend voting, limitations on election length and expenditures, etc. Any party that cared about the health of our democracy, and not just their bank account. would want this.
Whoops, I forget we are dealing with the GOP.
8
Why not just disqualify the ballots fraudulently and illegally filed and declare the opposing candidate the winner? Giving the Republicans a second bite at the apple seems like rewarding bad behavior.
101
@John A. Figliozzi You took the words right out of my mouth. It doesn't seem right that a man who has already spent a lot of money campaigning should have to do that all over again. He is being punished for the Republicans’ misdeeds.
12
@John A. Figliozzi
State law requires a new race. Technically even though we all know all republicons march in lock step with the National party. In this election it was only Harris who was found to have corrupt "employees" so other republicons whom were not implicated are eligible to run. Heck Harris is legally eligible. I think he is bailing in hopes that people stop trying to investigate so he doesn't end up charged in a crime.
8
They're gonna have a re-do and one of them is dropping out?!
Why bother?
26
The fact that this guy was even allowed to run is a testament to the Republican Party's embrace of corruption as a means to consolidating ever greater power.
65
Mark Harris, sir, even in the end you don't seem capable of telling the truth. Being an honest person is always the best policy, even for an evangelical pastor.
50
And Mr Harris. How great to have said I am very proud of my son to set the recons straight and I will withdraw having made some serious mistakes in judgement. How refreshing that would have been.
4
Evangelical pastors usually preach what’s right and then do what’s wrong. Take money from gullible pensioners and do whatever they want. Fallwell gives them mulligans for all transgressions
8
Seeking comments from NC constituents.
Only one so far.
Please tell me people in NC read the NYT.
12
@Su Penn, from the most gerrymandered state in the country, we did vote Obama in '08. This created a "never again" mindset in the state GOP; and as others have noted, nothing is beneath them.
10
@Su Penn
I read the Times - though I am a transplant (like many here in the Carolinas).
My only comment is that until the transplants started arriving here (helping to vote in Obama and Roy Cooper) - this kind of thing probably would have went unchecked.
Ditto with the Republican Gerrymandering that the U.S. Supreme Court has deemed illegally racially drawn twice.
12
@Su Penn it is really incredible as a transplant I see that Charlotte is very progressively Democrat but the outlying areas are GOP all the way. The 9th district is comprised of Charlotte and these very old fashioned Republican hardline counties surrounding the city. That is where you will find the GOP bible thumping supporters. But I see that the influx of Northeast and Midwest transplants grow day by day and we are spreading out to the outlying counties as the infrastructure of Charlotte cannot contain the number of people who are transferring here. I see this as a sign of hope that we can change the color of NC from purple to blue. All in due time....
Local TV news reporting tonight Dems were tipped off about an investigation into absentee ballot irregularities so they didn’t do it this year but in 2016 they used the same guy that Harris did this year.
1
Would be great, Jes, if you had a citation/reference for this.
3
@Dana
I dunno about the tipoff but it has been widely reported that the harvester/fraudster hired by Harris has also worked for Dems.
Didn’t North Carolina just send a woman to jail for mistakenly telling her immigrant boyfriend to register?
11
@John
She is brown, the rules are different for those viewed as others.
8
Had his fraud been undiscovered he would have taken office without any regard to his health condition. The insincerity displayed by yet another so called man of faith who supposedly lives according to the ten commandments is dispiccable and sinful!
81
Apparently, self-funded hiring of fraudulent political operatives by GOP candidates is a very real problem and present danger in the nation's electoral system. Quite unlike the much ballyhooed prospect of Democrats organizing ballot box stuffing by non-citizens. GOP ringing alarm bells about non-existent "emergencies" while very real corruption is countenanced among their own ranks. I'm sure there are "wall" contractors with GOP ties already lining up at their representatives offices, while some senator's cronies ponder clever new ways to restrict voting between meetings with likely well-heeled donors in search of a favor...
13
You sanctimonious HYPOCRITE!!!!
Try to LIVE by what you PREACH once in a while.
15
@Moehoward Preaching is just another version of scam artist. What they preach is irrelevant to how they live.
"Although Mr. Harris denied any personal wrongdoing, he testified that he had hired the contractor at the center of the scandal, L. McCrae Dowless Jr., and he acknowledged that he gave “incorrect” testimony to the state board last Thursday."
Mr. Harris admitted that he hired the man who committed election fraud (in Harris' favor) and that he perjured himself.
Harris knows he has no business running. This fraudster must be held accountable for his criminal behavior.
22
@L
....and his health troubles are possibly fake as well.
When does a liar stop lying? How can you tell? He is a criminal pastor and criminal politician.
And now he is exposed! Oh, and his son helped expose him. Truth outs.
2
Mark my words, Mr. McCready will receive a tsunami of donations from every state in this country in this redo so there will be no doubt who has won this time.
15
absolutely, and he deserves the win. A stand up guy who will do good by the state.
6
There is no bottom for the Repub. party, nor for evangelicals.
39
Even when bailing out, he lies!
Quintessential Republican!
Just own up to your fraud and quit!
Health reasons, my rear end!!
22
He's an evangelical pastor. I would have laid money that he was a fraud just on that basis. Now we know for sure. Lock him up!
39
Republicans finally have strong evidence of voter fraud.
40
@Broken, it's called electoral fraud. The voters were duped; they didn't do anything wrong.
10
The poor guy..exposed as a total fraud by his son. Religious, racist, Republican...the old trifecta. They wear it well. Time to vote them all out!!
31
My bet: the GOP told Harris to not even think of running again. Totally tainted.
5
"Incorrect testimony." I.e., lies. Hopefully he was under oath and is now prosecutable. Or he can just go back to lying to and fleecing his congregation.
15
Shouldn’t Harris -at the very least- be held accountable for the cost of the investigation, the cost of the new election, and the damage to the constituents that his crimes have caused?
Why should the citizens of NC have to pay for Harris’s malfeasance?
Where are the NC Republicans demanding that taxpayers shouldn’t be responsible for a new election?
55
@Josh Wilson
Of course he won't.
But the black guy down the street in Raleigh who is smoking some cannabis in his house will do thirty years for simple possession.
29
Charge the new election to Art Pope and Robin Hayes. They can easily afford it.
2
Remember, this is a "man of the cloth" who spent his life telling others how to live according to the "Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ." But beyond that, consider the actions of the NCGOP in this case, how that insisted that he won and should be "certified" without question.
Finally: Felonies were committed here. Why hasn't anyone been charged? Why is Trump's man down here asking for voting records that will cost our state millions to produce, so he can justify a microscopic examination to identify a handful of miscast votes?
This is about Election Fraud, plain and simple. This is where the citizens of North Carolina need to draw a sharp line and demand prosecutions of these Republicans who were not satisfied with their un-Constitutional Gerrymander and had to go even further into illegal territory to scratch-out a win.
The "jig is up" and justice will be served. Take away the Gerrymander and take an honest accounting of our voters: We are a Blue state and we're about to demonstrate that loud and clear, once and for all.
69
here, here! enough is enough
1
So there are no repercussions to the GOP over this attempt to steal a seat in the US House, they just get a "do-over"? Shouldn't there be a meaningful penalty for trying to rig an election?
58
@BWMN
There is, and now it's up to the feds to get working on this.
14
The real tragedy here is that the people of the NC 9th district will be left with no representation in Congress until a new election is held. Considering that a House term is only 2 years, that's a large chunk of the term during which the seat will remain empty.
10
I took pause, not knowing how the intricacies of election/campaign rules in NC would affect the future of representation for the state.
Given that another conservative can take the place of Harris, I can only question it more. . .
How is it not "baked-in" that NC political rules allow for a "substitute" GOP rep to supplant what I would, objectively, conclude as a win for the Dems?
12
Allowing this guy to run for office again after being caught in a massive election fraud scandal would be like allowing a bank robber to have another "opportunity' because he got caught by the police the first time.
Mr. Harris may be attributing his decision to his "health" but the only real circumstance here is his own belief that he could have actually gotten away with his crime. That he is now blaming the contractor he hired shows that he has no ethics or sense of personal responsibility.
Hopefully he will be prosecuted and punished to the fullest extent of the law. He should also be forced to return all of his campaign donations.
25
Darn. That gold standard guvvermint health insurance and silver plated no show salary would have been „just the ticket“ for a swell fellow down on his luck too ...
17
Oh, suddenly it's his health that justifies not running? So, the timing vis-a-vis the recent revelations is just coincidence? Uh-huh...
17
@J Young
Maybe he had a stroke when he realized he was caught red-handed. Guilt and fear of getting discovered are bad for the health.
1
So wrong (lying) is not really wrong in North Carolina elections--especially if you are a Republican politician plus a pastor? Pastor Harris evidently has his North Carolina "Get out of jail free card."
What goes on in North Carolina needs to stay in North Carolina.
15
Do these self righteous hypocrite Republican criminals ever pay a price for their criminal actions? Ever?
Republicans can't win an election without gerrymandering, voter suppression and intimidation, ballot stuffing and/or harvesting, and if all else fails treasonous help from their Russian buddies.
Jail for Republican election cheats. All of them from Trump on down to this Evangelical miscreant. They all know exactly what they are doing. Trashing our democracy, and/or treason.
80
@Ignatz Farquad
It's not a crime when the President does it.
It's not a Crime when Republicans do it.
They call it the 'Just US' Principle.
In fact, it's their Only principle.
5
Sounds like the stress of all of his lying and deceit caught up to him, health-wise. Also known as karma.
31
Why doesn't Harris just say he wants to spend more time with his family?
31
@Ben, yes, I bet he'd like to spend much more quality time with the son who ratted him out.
2
Why do the Republicans get to find a new candidate now that Mr. Harris has declined to run? Shouldn't the Democrat automatically win?
111
@Timothy J. Owens
Well, no -- Republicans are EXPECTED to cheat. And, get an automatic re-do when caught. It's their bold, new 'Just US!' program.
Get used to it.
7
@Timothy J. Owens, as has been noted in other articles (and prob'ly should be in every one) about this case of electoral fraud, the commission was bound by law to do one of two things: seat the guy who finished ahead in the initial count, or order a new election. No other option.
6
Mark Harris has lieabetes.
56
@Jack Steen
That’s a good one!
4
What about all of the other districts that were influenced by candidates that employed L. McCrae Dowless Jr.? They should all be investigated, Democrat and Republican.
8
These evangelicals are the most dishonest Americans I’ve encountered, bar none.
76
Still, questions remain: who does his hair?
5
There is more money in mega church evangelism.
27
Lock Him Up!
-keep repeating...
28
So is the criminal L. McCrae Dowless Jr. going to be charged and arrested? Isn't voter fraud a federal crime?
19
@Kanaka
L. Mic doesn't work for Democrats.
3
Dirty Donald and the GOP scream endlessly about voter fraud that doesn't exist, then commit voter fraud themselves.
The only reason this hypocrisy isn't jaw-dropping is because it's par for the course.
Lock this guy up!
36
@Discerning
Haven't seen a tweet about this. Has anyone?
1
Wow, it seems like these so-called Christians seem are giving Christianity a bad name!
12
Politicians and CEO's. When caught with their pants on fire it is always one of the following:
Resigning due to health reasons.
Resigning to pursue other opportunities.
Or my personal favorite...resigning to spend more time with my family.
At least this slug did not use his family as a prop. In fairness to him, he has looked bad since getting caught in this sordid mess.
13
Well, duh.
Should be headed to jail.
15
Aw, shucks. Cause he would lose. Bigly.
11
This is a brazen example of fraud by the professional political establishment on the citizens they are supposed to serve. It may be a crime. Similar frauds by the professionals are gerrymandering, onerous voter ID requirements, undermanned polling sites, broken machines, miscounts, dark money, purges of legitimate voters from the rolls, and many more. These may not be crimes per se, but only because the professional political class itself also decides what is and what is not a crime. But they are frauds on the electorate, nonetheless.
14
When you can't stand the heat, it's time to leave the kitchen...
5
Harris was probably "encouraged" to bow out. North Carolina Republicans will need time to set up new suppression and vote stealing campaigns but a bit more subtly this time. If after this campaign, a Republican actually wins this district it also says more about the voters of that district than the party they voted for.
19
This is another Republican stunt. Now that Mark Harris has been caught doing exactly what Republicans have been crying about for years, voter fraud, the Republican party wants to slip in a new face to run for his seat.
With this new face, the Republican party believes that the voters will have an excuse to forget all about any crimes committed. The Republican party treats the American democratic process as a hostile corporate take-over and not a contest of ideas.
41
Warning: The Surgeon General has determined that Election Fraud is dangerous to your health.
20
On the other side of that carton: “Warning: Republicans are dangerous to the constitution and democracy.”
5
“I’ve come to realize over the course of the last couple of months that what we’re up against is politicians who put themselves before the people they’re supposed to serve,” Mr. McCready said. “What we saw this week was a politician who let his own desire for power color his view, and he did the wrong thing instead of the right thing.”
What Mr. McCready needs to point out is that the 'politicians' are Republican Party politicians & they only reflect the corrupt, anti-democratic mentality of the party.
No other Republican politician will be better than Mark Harris.
It is years too late to tie the behavior to the party. But, better late than never.
23
Damaged goods. I was wondering how he was going to pull off a second run after claiming he had too many 'health issues' to be honest in the inquiry of the last election stunt his group pulled.
8
Thank you, Republicans, for warning us so much about voter fraud -- and glad we actually caught some people in the act. Oops, they were Republicans.
21
I sure hope a criminal investigation is opened into Dowless and his behavior. Maybe a plea deal to see just how far and wide this corruption seethes?
11
So, when their candidate is found to have rigged the election, Republicans can withdraw his name and run someone else? Since this is a re-do, I think the ballot should remain unchanged.
47
Dems were doing same thing...Dem-controlled Board of Elections adjourned the meeting immediately after the Harris matter and will likely not pursue accusations against Dems.
1
Democrats were doing the same thing? Even FOX news disagrees.
10
@JES Any evidence to support that allegation, Matlock?
13
Mr Harris is a very lucky man. He's not in jail, which is where he belongs.
17
With this "health" stuff, it looks like God does not want the pastor to be a Congressman after all...
6
Excellent!
But many more to go!
4
Looking forward to see how the regular contributors here will still find a way to vilify him for not running or somehow hold Trump responsible for this.
Let the pile on begin!
1
No one's vilifying him for not running again; he's being vilified for committing voter fraud. You know, something that Trump and the GOP loves to accuse the Democrats of doing but in reality are the ones who are actually doing it.
19
@Cindy
I think this is also at the alleged stage. At least the 6th word of the title seems to suggest that.
If the Republicans were as evil as the commentators in here say about their desire to hold on to power above all else, wouldn't he run again and force an impeachment or other form of removal.
How about saying glad he's out of the picture and let's focus on moving forward. Is that too much to ask for ?
@Norville T. Johnson
hmmm... 'focus on moving forward' - something that the Republicans practice so well? I'm hearing the words "Benghazi" and "e-mail servers" ringing in my ears
5
"financed a fraud-tainted voter-turnout effort" - this description is wrong. The GOP Harris Campaign paid for a voter fraud campaign through ballot harvesting. It is clear that the most well documented and widespread voter fraud case has nothing to do with voter ids and entirely stems from a GOP campaign.
10
If he hadn’t been caught Harris would have gone to Washington to “serve his constituents,” preaching his handmaiden’s tale gospel all the way.
But who are the constituents of politicians who win through fraud and gerrymandering?
11
It would hard to be raising funds for his campaign at the same time as soliciting support for his legal defense fund. The harm done to the constituents in this district is vast and immeasurable. He effectively denied them representation in Congress for almost a year. He deserves to be tried for his malfeasance and if convicted spend the rest of his life in Club Fed.
12
Mr. Harris should be on trial, never mind planning on surgery. It sounds like a convenient excuse to try to evade prosecution.
Hopefully the voters realize that they cannot trust any Republican who is running in the race. They are, after all, backed by the State GOP. And so was Harris. It does not sound as if the Party cares who they back, so long as they put Party above the voters.
11
So the GOP cheats to win an election they wouldn't ordinarily be able to win.
The GOP gets caught cheating, and the results are invalidated.
The GOP gets to run a new primary and gets another shot at doing it over again.
It's almost as if the lack of consequences encourages and emboldens this kind of autocratic behavior.
23
Who better to warn us about election fraud than the Republican party. Now we know when money is not protected as political speech to influence an election.
7
Learned something new today. Evidently moral/ethical bankruptcy and hypocrisy qualify as medical conditions.
15
A mother of four in Texas was recently sentenced to 8 years in prison for voting illegally by mistake. If the GOP has any principles, this guy will get 20.
60
Nailed it!
1
Shouldn't Mr Harris be arrested and indicted for lying under oath, hiding email, hiring crooks to commit fraud, wasting public funds on fraudulent election, so on and so forth? Right thing to do will be to grant victory to Mr McCready who would have been the winner in the first place?
33
His health problems seemed not to concern him enough to press the election board to declare him the winner right up to last week. How strange it only became an issue when it became clear he cheated and lied his way to "victory." He doesn't even have the backbone to face a likely defeat in the rerun. GOP values for you.
21
He gave "incorrect testimony"? Is that like "alternate facts"? The lack of integrity is astounding.
16
Astounding for the young to experience this in their time. And get it and often seem unaffected by the lying.
How is this-Harris dropping out of the race-not a concession of the election?
iow: why have a do-over if one of the nominees has dropped out?
37
Better to go to jail a civilian than a politician or candidate, I guess!
6
"Voter fraud" by Democrat voters confirmed: 0
Actual voter fraud by Republican candidates: 1
Need I say more?
11
Haven't really heard much from the Republican party about this incidence of voter fraud. Where are the twitter denouncements?
15
Can we please see the same vigorous prosecution that was imposed upon the women in Texas that didn't know they were not allowed to vote?
15
One more step toward taking our state back!!!
8
He disregarded the advice of his son, a state assistant attorney, but he went along with his sleazy campaign manager.
13
So awful he just did not admit not taking his sons advice a step aside. He first said that’s his opinion. It was outrageous.
I guess committing several felonies, including election fraud and perjury, can take a toll on one’s health. If Harris practiced what he preached, maybe his health would improve. Classical Evangelical holier-than-thou hypocrite.
16
Of course McCready should be declared the winner and Harris and Co. go to trial. But Republicans get another bite of the apple, another chance to lie and cheat to be assured of winning, with a brand shiny new candidate.
23
I'm beginning to think God doesn't want Mark Harris to go to Congress.
The good Lord works in mysterious ways, I suppose.
13
It's very hard for a father to have to live up to the standards set by his son. It's must be even harder for a pastor to live up to the standards asked by his Father. Pity that Mr. (Rev.?) Mark Harris can not do either.
10
GOP strategy:
Cheat
Get Caught
Get a do-over
Repeat until a GOP win
32
The Rev. Harris, he has such a nice pin in his lapel that you'd never know he was trying to subvert America's democracy. Go figure.
10
Two questions for the New York Times:
1) Will the next North Carolina election occur before or after the unconstitutionally gerrymandered districts per N.C. courts are redraw?
2) Given the e-mail paper trail and contents about the fraudulent N.C. election, is Mr. Harris under criminal investigation for directing a felony?
15
Public confidence is undermined. A new election is warranted,” declared Pastor Mark Harris. What about congregational confidence in church elders who fail to advise pastors entering upon politics of Paul's warning in 2 Corinthians 6:14?
There are reasons to have elders, “shepherds of the church of God.” However, pastors, particularly when under the spell of politics, find reasons to challenge their wisdom. Elders can slow a pastor down, disagree, and even declare he’s wrong. Acts 20: 28-30 Growing numbers of believers tire of being tarred with tawdry brushes of political alliances when their leaders venture into the compromise of politics and forsake the unalloyed and unsullied expression of the word, God commanded them to speak.
15
Sorry, but did I miss the part where Harris will be charged with a felony? Isn’t election tampering a federal crime, even in NC?
232
@MissyR
Yes, election tampering IS, indeed, a crime -- but only when non-Republicans do it.
Especially below the Bible Belt.
29
@MissyR Perjury, too.
10
@Stephanie MAGA logic. Always Fair and Balanced.
3
Now that the Republican candidate's fraud has been unmasked, and after it has been made clear that he actually lost the election... now NC offers Republicans another chance? Why? Seriously... why? McCready won the election, for pete's sake? Why should he have to run... again... after he has already won the first time? There is no serious person who doubts McCready won; even Harris's sons think so.
179
@David Maybe it is the right thing to do. Don't you think McCready will be a much stronger winner, if he wins the second time around by a landslide? Don't you think the people of this district deserve a do over? There really is no other outcome that could possibly be more fair.
2
Because the North Carolina legislature is controlled by corrupt Republicans who will do whatever it takes to remain in power and control.
Can't wait to leave this state.
6
“It is my hope that in the upcoming primary, a solid conservative leader will emerge to articulate the critical issues that face our nation,” said Mr. Harris, an evangelical pastor from Charlotte.
******
Can we start with lying, cheating, and stealing by conservatives who want to claim that voter fraud is a problem? Because I'm really tired of evangelical politicians who want to tell me - and everyone else - that we have to live by their rules trying to justify their politics of the ends justifying the means. We can start with Sarah Huckabee evangelizing that her invisible sky friend is going to take care of climate change.
192
Perhaps Mark Harris can work on his health in a federal prison cell as an accessory to massive civil rights violations and election rigging.
"If conservatives become convinced that they cannot win democratically, they will not abandon conservatism. They will reject democracy."
- David Frum
The Republican Party and North Carolina Republicans are rotten to their core.
Wake up, North Carolina, join the modern democratic world.
252
@Socrates They've decided that Vince Lombardi's old aphorism applies to politics instead of football "winning isn't everything, it's the ONLY thing" . Party of country is the way these days for Republicans.
16
@Socrates Hey friend, it's me again. Although we could not be more different in outlook than our neighbors, (they never looked at us the same after my wife put up a Kerry for President sign) we have won them over by demonstrating that we are in fact good people. People who can be depended on for tending their injured dog, or a voice of support in times of tragedy. We are known to be willing to do anything for them. Making progress one step at a time.
2
Great to see another bad guy go down.
78
I wasn't expecting him to run again, although I still believe it would have been a close race. Republicans always seem to be very forgiving of other republicans; especially when they're Christian republicans.
123
If he had baptized me, I would be checking with a dermatologist for a skin transplant.
12
To be completely fair, Republicans repeatedly warned us about election fraud. We just didn't realize they were the one committing it.
329
@Randall
Although given the GOPs longstanding use of projection as a propaganda technique, it doesn't come as much of a surprise.
21
@Randall
Oh, yes we did!
18
@Randall Republicans prattle on about voter fraud. This was election fraud, it wasn't about voters committing fraud but about the campaign committing fraud. That SOTUS thief Mitch McConnell had the CHUTZPAH to say that this election crime validated the Republicans claim of the wxistance of voter fraud, No Mitch. It didn't.
4
Mark Harris is lucky he's not going to jail.
31
(R) = Get Out of Jail Free card in NC. Better yet a Not Even Charged card.
11
For years, the Republican Party has been working hard to undermine the voting rights of minorities and democrats in this country in the name of supposed voter fraud. Good to see that this particular Republican will pay for his actual voter fraud.
86
@Galfrido
He is not really paying for his actions, he is not being punished as far as we know. He lost his position because it is obvious he will not win it on a second election.
14
@Galfrido: There' paying and then there's *paying.* Harris may well slip out of the 'cuffs, but the memory of watching his son, an AUSA testify at that hearing about having told his father what he was doing was illegal will never fade away for that family. Shame well beyond any Grand Jury indictment IMHO.
11
"Shame" is not a word in the current republican language, and does nothing to ameliorate the harm caused.
6
“It is my hope that in the upcoming primary, a solid conservative leader will emerge to articulate the critical issues that face our nation,” said Mr. Harris, an evangelical pastor from Charlotte.
An evangelical pastor? Go figure.
63
@Nick Schleppend
At least they don't gravitate towards boys.
1
@DaveD Don't bet on it - look at the emerging sex abuse scandal in the Baptist church.
2
He lied under oath (perjury), hid emails (obstruction of justice), and was caught paying a man to illegally harvest ballots. Time for indictments.
350
@Islandgirl
Harris should be made to cover the entire expense to the NC government for the new election.
42
@Islandgirl
Exactly right. This guy cannot be allowed to just shrug and slip away from what he tried to do.
As always with GOP dirty tricks and illegal activities, it's useful to consider how they would have reacted if a Democrat had been caught doing the same thing.
45
@Pat
We define justice vastly diferently than
Republicans -- Justice vs. Just Us.
That's just the way they'd prefer it,
and it's always worked -- for them.
1
I hope he is prosecuted and goes to jail. Funny, his health didn't seem to bother him before he was caught in a lie.
239
@JanTG
Funny isn't it. The guilty always seem to get sick. Eg. Manifort....
4
"I don't remember doing that" should be the official motto of the GOP.
166
Finally. Apparently his family has some influence and honor.
Congratulations.
25
So Harris is not going to run.
"A noble spirit embiggens the smallest man" - Lisa Simpson.
17
How about this guy stands trial?
118
@Lee V. He would probably be on trial in California or New York. Not in his deep south state of North Carolina. And now he wants a solid conservative to be elected. Such gall!
12
Yes.
But, now will he plead guilty to election fraud or will he face trial?
77
Good idea now he will be free to testify at his trial on election fraud crimes.
63
Gosh it would be awesome if McCready pulled this out. North Carolina needs to decisively become a 21st century state.
60
@Cousy
Actually, I don't know what happened to NC. I was there in the summer of '78 and had a wonderful experience, visited several campuses of the State University and meet some great people.
When I went back 20 years later a was a different place.
I remember reading an interview with James Taylor lamenting the state politics there. When his parents were young it was a Progressive state, and he, like I, are wondering what went wrong.
23
Same thing is happening to Florida. 20 plus years of corrupt Republican rule.
16
Translation: "Dodged a bullet there! Can't risk it again."
46
He is indeed a sick man.
64