RALEIGH — Increasing negative attacks from incumbent Democratic U.S. Rep. Kathy Manning on her opponent, Republican Christian Castelli, shows that the race is closer than many pundits predicted when the 6th District was redrawn earlier this year.
Manning, who is in her first term representing the Greensboro-centric district after running against outgoing U.S. Rep. and Senate candidate Ted Budd in 2018, has attacked Castelli over abortion issues and clams that the first-time candidate supports a “nationwide abortion ban.”
Castelli launched an ad featuring his daughter, Sarah, who was diagnosed with cerebral palsy at birth.
Manning’s criticism of Castelli also said that he supported “gutting health care” and increasing insurance premiums. “Christian Castelli’s policies would take away our rights and health decisions and put lives at risk,” a website set up by the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee reads.
“Expanding health care coverage for disabilities is a major priority of mine,” Castelli says in his new ad.
As the race tightened, so has interest from the national committees. The DCCC added Manning to their “Frontline” program earlier this year – the only Democratic incumbent in the state on the list. The Frontline designation is for incumbents in what they feel are tight races.
Republicans both in Washington, D.C. and in the state feel Castelli’s campaign is peaking at the right time and high turnout from more rural areas in the redrawn district, such as those in northern Guilford County and Rockingham County, could produce a surprise on Nov. 8.
National Republicans also cited numerous ethics concerns with Manning. In one report, she was cited for violating the STOCK Act on 51 separate occasions in 2021. That goes along with an issue that dogged her first campaign in 2018, when her family’s involvement in several downtown Greensboro development projects was questioned.
“One of Kathy Manning’s closing arguments is abortion and one week out from election, her extreme stance isn’t going to save her. NC-06 needs to elect commonsense Republican Christian Castelli, who stands for life and an America-first agenda,” RNC spokeswoman Taylor Mazock told North State Journal.
