CHARLOTTE — Mark Harris, pastor of a prominent conservative Baptist church in Charlotte and president of the Baptist State Convention of North Carolina, is considering a bid for the U.S. Senate, the Charlotte Observer reported May 6.
Mark Harris
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Harris, pastor of First Baptist Church in Charlotte, met recently with about 70 people from around 20 North Carolina counties who are asking him to run for the Republican nomination for the Senate seat held by Kay Hagan, a Democrat, the paper said. At least four other politicians are thought to be considering entering the GOP primary race.
The 47-year-old pastor was active last year in support of an amendment to the North Carolina constitution which restricts marriage to a union between a man and a woman. In a referendum, voters approved the measure 61 percent to 39 percent.
According to the Observer, Harris has hosted Republican precinct meetings at his church and invited prominent conservatives to speak there, including former presidential candidates Mike Huckabee and Rick Santorum and the Family Research Council’s Tony Perkins.
“I’m certainly humbled and flattered by the confidence that these folks have expressed,” Harris told the Observer. “It’s a little bit overwhelming to be honest. Right now we’re doing two things. One … doing a lot of listening to people and the second and most importantly to me is just to pray and seek God’s leadership … and see if that’s his plan for me.”
Harris, pastor of First Baptist Church since 2005, was elected president of the North Carolina convention in 2011 and reelected last November. He also is a former trustee of Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary in Wake Forest, N.C.
Robert Dilday ([email protected]) is managing editor of the Religious Herald.