North Carolina redistricting has placed Democrat Don Davis in a difficult re-election fight after conservative coastal communities were added to his predominantly Black congressional district.
Mr Davis, a two-term representative, travelled to Hatteras Island to seek support from voters who knew little about him. The area was recently moved into the First Congressional District as part of a mid-decade remapping effort backed by President Trump ahead of November’s midterm elections.
At a meet-and-greet in Buxton, a predominantly white and conservative town, Mr Davis presented himself as a pragmatic Democrat who could work across party lines without allowing Congress to move too far left.
He told voters that even if Democrats took control of the House, Mr Trump would remain in the White House and could veto legislation. “That means you still have to get a signature or be prepared for a veto override,” he said.
The argument is central to Mr Davis’s campaign against Republican Laurie Buckhout, who has portrayed him as a partisan Democrat determined to obstruct Mr Trump’s programme. At a recent Republican event in Dallas, she called him “Do-Nothing Don” and accused Democrats of blocking policies in Washington before taking credit for them at home.
Don Davis fights for support in a reshaped district
Mr Davis has tried to build a centrist record during his time in Congress, breaking with Democrats on several high-profile votes. He supported legislation requiring immigrants in the country illegally who are accused of crimes to be detained for possible deportation, backed an effort to end last year’s government shutdown and voted to fund Immigration and Customs Enforcement without limits on Mr Trump’s immigration crackdown.
He also joined Republicans in votes to criminalise gender-affirming care for minors, support a $1.15 trillion defence policy Bill and condemn socialism. Mr Davis said: “I don’t support socialism. OK, let’s now talk about people, families that are hurting here in Eastern North Carolina.”
Ms Buckhout has nevertheless sought to tie him to the national Democratic Party. She has highlighted his vote against a Republican tax and spending Bill that extended tax cuts while reducing safety-net programmes, including health-care subsidies.
“They did not just vote against the bill; they voted against your paycheck,” she told supporters in Texas. Mr Davis said he backed the tax cuts but not at the expense of health care.
The remapped district is a significant challenge for the Democrat. The new boundaries brought Republican-leaning communities in Dare County, including Buxton, into a district at the heart of North Carolina’s Black Belt, while moving some predominantly Black communities, including Mr Davis’s home town of Snow Hill, into a neighbouring seat.
Mr Davis narrowly defeated Ms Buckhout in 2024, taking 49.5 per cent of the vote. Mr Trump won the area with 51 per cent, while the same boundaries would have produced a margin of nearly 12 points for the president two years ago.
The district has been represented by a Black Democrat since 1992, but political forecasters now regard it as either Republican-leaning or a toss-up. A Republican victory would give the party its first chance to represent eastern North Carolina since 1883.
Ms Buckhout, a retired Army colonel and former acting assistant secretary of defence for cyber policy in the Trump administration, has also drawn attention for briefly betting less than 1,000 dollars on her own victory through the Kalshi app. Her account was suspended and she later described the wager as “a dumb mistake”.
Mr Davis has kept his campaign focused on local concerns rather than the broader battle over redistricting or divisions within the Democratic Party. He has promised to seek funding for a low-lying, two-lane coastal highway that has repeatedly been overwhelmed by floodwater and sand during natural disasters.
He joked about the repeated changes to his constituency, telling voters: “I don’t know how else you draw the district anymore — take it out into the ocean? And then I’m going to have to go swim and talk to the fish.”
The congressman, an Air Force veteran and Presbyterian lay minister who grew up harvesting tobacco, declined to say whether he would support Hakeem Jeffries for speaker if Democrats won the House. “I’m not making any presumptions that we’re going to win,” he said. “I’m working hard every single day to earn every single vote.”
Some voters on Hatteras Island said they had initially believed the new boundaries made a Davis victory impossible. Michael Liberi, a 64-year-old independent from Hatteras, said he valued the Democrat’s approach and intended to support him.
“I like Don Davis’s energy,” Mr Liberi said. “He just hits it on the head when he talks about Eastern North Carolina, and I like his position on working together.”
Jan Dawson, a Democrat from Buxton, attended the event to help build support for Mr Davis in the conservative town. “It’s going to be hard, but not impossible,” she said.
