Mark Harris

Mark Harris, an influential Baptist pastor and conservative political figure, entered the race for Congress in North Carolina's 9th Congressional District in 2014. He positioned himself as a staunch conservative with a focus on family values, fiscal conservatism, and small government principles. Harris's campaign garnered support from evangelical voters, and he ran against incumbent Republican Robert Pittenger. Despite his efforts and a spirited campaign, Harris fell short in the primary election, losing to Pittenger by a narrow margin. The primary race was notable for its intensity and the closeness of the results, reflecting the divisions within the Republican base at the time over direction and leadership.

Mark Harris, a former pastor and politician, ran for a seat in the United States Senate in 2016, representing North Carolina. Harris was a Republican candidate in the primary election, challenging incumbent U.S Senator Richard Burr. Despite his attempts to appeal to conservative voters by emphasizing traditional values and his opposition to federal government intervention, Harris was unable to secure the nomination. Richard Burr, a well-established figure in the Republican Party with significant financial support and a strong campaign network, won the primary decisively. This loss was a significant setback for Harris, who had also run for Congress previously, marking his ongoing struggle to capture a major political office on a national level.

In the November 2018 midterm elections, Mark Harris, a Republican, ostensibly won the race for North Carolina's 9th Congressional District by a narrow margin against Democratic opponent Dan McCready. Harris campaigned on a platform that emphasized conservative values, including opposition to abortion and support for gun rights. However, his victory was overshadowed by allegations of election fraud involving absentee ballot tampering. Subsequent investigations revealed unethical practices by a consultant hired by the Harris campaign, leading to significant controversy and the eventual decision by the North Carolina State Board of Elections to order a new election. This scandal cast doubt not only on Harris's victory but on the integrity of the election process itself, with repercussions felt across the entire political landscape of the state.

In 2019, Republican Mark Harris was caught in an election fraud scandal involving absentee ballots during the 2018 midterm elections in North Carolina's 9th Congressional District. Harris beat Democrat Dan McCready by 905 votes, but widespread absentee ballot irregularities came to light. Investigations revealed that Harris's campaign owed much of its success to a scheme orchestrated by McCrae Dowless, a political operative hired by Harris's campaign, which illegally collected unsealed and incomplete absentee ballots and filled them in favor of Harris. Following intense scrutiny, Mark Harris denied any knowledge of Dowless's illegal activities; however, he eventually announced he would not run in the newly-called special election, admitting that his poor health would prevent him from continuing on, following the North Carolina State Board of Elections unanimously ordering a new election in the district.