STAR — A Montgomery County Republican is trying for another shot at a seat in the N.C. House of Representatives.
Joey Davis,47, announced his candidacy for the 66th House District on Thursday.
According to his bio, Davis has been in sales for 20 years and currently works for Friendly Chevrolet Buick in Troy and is past chairman of the Montgomery County Republican Party.
Davis challenged former Rep. Ken Goodman for the same seat in the last election.
Goodman garnered a little more than 50 percent of the vote with 13,361 votes cast in his favor. Davis secured nearly 47 percent with 12,338 and Green Party candidate Justin Miller came in at 2.12 percent with 556 votes.
Although Davis carried the majority of his home county and the sliver of Stanly County in the 66th District, Richmond helped propel Goodman to victory.
Goodman recently resigned from the house after being appointed to the N.C. Industrial Commission. Former district court judge Scott Brewer was appointed to fill the seat.
Brewer told the RO that he plans to run for the seat in the next election.
“I never would have sought the nomination if I hadn’t planned to keep the seat,” he said.
In his announcement, Davis came out swinging against Brewer, saying the former judge has aligned himself with the far left wing of the Democratic Party, siding with the “radical left” members of the General Assembly in opposing bipartisan legislation on the environment, banking and education.
“Those positions may please the governor and the extreme partisans who appointed him, but they do not line up with the beliefs of the voters in the 66th District,” Davis said in his statement. “I pledge to put the voters of the 66th District first and to pursue common sense, conservative legislation that benefits our community, not radicals in Raleigh.”
He added that he knows many people in the district and looks forward to meeting more in the coming months.
Davis isn’t the only person looking to flip the seat red after decades of being held by a Richmond County Democrat.
Both Richmond County Commissioner Ben Moss and young Republican Joshua Flores announced their intent to run in January.
Of the two, the N.C. State Board of Elections only has campaign finance paperwork posted for Flores who was convicted Jan. 29 on one misdemeanor count each of larceny and financial card fraud in Stanly County.
