One of a dozen or so Republican primaries in the House to keep an eye on is in district 35. Chris Malone, a member of the Wake County School Board, and Duane Cutlip, who ran unsucessfully for state legislative office in 2008 and 2010, are competing there.
The Eastern Wake News has a tidy rundown of the race so far, including comments from the Democrat, Lori Millberg, who is unopposed in the primary. Malone and Cutlip are exchanging criticisms:
The race for the Republican nomination is young, but campaign posturing is already in full swing.
Cutlip has criticized Malone for jeopardizing his school board seat while the board is under Democratic control. He also questions Malone’s motives for running for a seat in the state House.
“His motivations for running for office are a bit different from mine …. I’m not looking to get another seat somewhere down the road,” Cutlip said.
Malone disputes Cutlip’s claim.
“I told (Cutlip) personally that, if I win, I’ll limit myself to two or three terms because there are other things I want to do,” Malone said. “But those (other things) are non-political. What he’s telling people isn’t true.”
Malone also said that, because the Democrats are already in the majority on the school board, a lost seat for the GOP (which would likely happen if Malone wins the NC House race) “doesn’t change much.”
District 35 is an open seat created in the new redistricting plan. It encompasses northeastern Wake County.
