Durham scientist joins U.S. Senate field in North Carolina
DURHAM, N.C. (AP) — A scientist and university administrator announced Wednesday that he’ll run for a North Carolina U.S. Senate seat being vacated at the end of 2022 by Republican incumbent Richard Burr.
Richard Watkins Jr. of Durham said he’s entering the Senate race in part to ensure “science is represented at the highest levels of our government,” particularly with challenges like climate change and COVID-19. “If we are to tackle the great challenges of tomorrow, then science must lead today,” he added.
Watkins joins at least two other Democrats who’ve announced their candidacies — current state Sen. Jeff Jackson and former state Sen. Erica Smith. Smith finished second in the 2020 Democratic Senate primary to Cal Cunningham. Watkins ran a distant third to U.S. Rep. David Price in a three-candidate Democratic primary in 2018 for Price’s 4th District seat.
Former U.S. Rep. Mark Walker announced in December that he’ll run for the Republican nomination to succeed Burr, who announced years ago he wouldn’t seek reelection in November 2022. Lara Trump, the former president’s daughter-in-law, is considering a bid. She is currently a New York resident but grew up in Wilmington and went to N.C. State University.
Watkins, who received a doctorate in microbiology and immunology from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill with an emphasis on AIDS research, operates a consulting firm focused on science education, research and advocacy. He also works for a UNC-Chapel Hill program that offers scholarships to undergraduate students interested in pursuing graduate work in STEM fields.
Watkins, who is Black, grew up in Greensboro and got his bachelor’s degree from Fayetteville State University. Smith accused national Democratic Party leaders of stacking the deck against her as a Black woman in her 2020 primary with Cunningham.
Primary elections are set for March 2022. A state elections official last week recommended they be delayed by two months, saying the slow return of census data makes it unlikely that redistricting will be completed in time for elections under remapped seats.