Ada Fisher - Campaigns

Campaigns

Fisher ran for the United States Senate in 2002 in the Republican primary against Elizabeth Dole, who went on to win the general election; Fisher placed fourth in a field of seven Republican candidates. Fisher protested during the campaign that she was not allowed to participate in television forums featuring only two of the Republican candidates, and after the election, she filed a complaint regarding Dole's residency requirement. She ran against incumbent Congressman Mel Watt of the North Carolina's 12th congressional district in 2004 and 2006. In 2008, she ran for the North Carolina General Assembly from North Carolina's 77th House district.

In 2004, Watt won with 67% of the vote, with Fisher gaining 60% of the vote in more Republican Davidson County. Fisher raised $400,000 to oppose Watt in 2006, with most of the money spent on direct mail; she said the national Republican Party had not given her "one dime of support," but local organizations were supportive. In 2008, Fisher told Talking Points Memo that the fundraising organization she had hired had given her back only $30,000 of the $400,000 she had raised in the cycle, directing the rest to its affiliated private vendors, in what echoed previous complaints listed at TPM.

In 2006, Fisher claimed that Watt ignored his constituents at the expense of travel related to his chairmanship of the Congressional Black Caucus. Her campaign theme was "Get a Doctor in the House" and she recommended a "prescription" composed of 10 platform planks. Fisher said that she had put 73,000 miles on her car traveling the six counties of the 12th District for her campaign.