Outside of the Old Sherrill’s Inn, lines formed to wait for buses, like a summer camp or field trip.
With the crowd dressed in a mix of political memorabilia, flannel shirts and boots — it was a scene that felt unlikely in some ways, said Jane Lawson, who had recently changed her voter registration from Democrat to unaffiliated. Would many people stand in the May heat to get on a bus to be shuttled to a political rally?
“Probably not. But for Jamie? Yes,” Lawson told the Asheville Citizen Times on a downhill bus ride.
Supporters of Democrat Jamie Ager, 48, were shuttled to the barn at Hickory Nut Gap Farm in Fairview May 18 to rally alongside another high-profile guest: former U.S. Department of Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg. It is the highest-profile endorsement of Ager so far in the campaign for North Carolina’s 11th Congressional District — a race that has looked closer and closer in recent weeks. In the 2024 election, the district was one of just 19 where voter support shifted away from Trump, the Citizen Times previously reported.
“People want to know how their life is going to be better depending on who is elected. And if we have the right kind of leaders, like Jamie, elected to Congress, I think folks are going to find that costs get under better control.”
Buttigieg has been rumored as among 2028’s frontrunners for the Democratic nomination for President. Recent polling sets Buttigieg just behind the New York lawmaker Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez in the race. He did not address the 2028 election during his speech, though jokingly said, “Don’t get me in trouble now,” after an attendee yelled “2028!”
Ager is running against incumbent two-term Republican Rep. Chuck Edwards, who has recently found himself embroiled in scandal. On May 14, the U.S. House Ethics Committee announced it was investigating the two-term Western North Carolina congressman for allegations of sexual harassment and creating and fostering a hostile work environment. Edwards has denied the allegations.
Since the beginning of 2025, Ager has outraised Edwards by over $900,000, according to filings with the U.S. Federal Elections Commission. Reports from the University of Virginia’s Center for Politics and the Cook Political Report have shifted the race toward Ager, however, noting the district remains Republican leaning.
Held at Hickory Nut Gap Farms, where Ager is CEO, the event had food trucks, local beer and renditions of John Prine songs. A band named “Mark Twang and the Twang Bangers” opened for the duo. Around 500 people — which is the capacity of the barn — were in attendance.
During his speech, Buttigieg said he had spent the afternoon shooting skeet with the Democratic hopeful and at one point joked that, while he prides himself in speaking multiple languages, he had never met someone “who speaks cow” before Ager. Buttigieg described Ager’s candidacy as bringing a perspective that the Democratic party needs. Ager’s campaign is building “a different, better kind of politics.”
“I think it’s especially important right now to be keeping all of our politics focused on everyday life, not on abstract ideas — definitely not on the kind of inside baseball stuff that dominates the press sometimes,” Buttigieg told the Citizen Times.
“People want to know how their life is going to be better depending on who is elected,” Buttigieg continued. “And if we have the right kind of leaders, like Jamie, elected to Congress, I think folks are going to find that costs get under better control.”
Ager’s platform has included advocating for a public option for quality affordable healthcare, taking on monopolies, reforming immigration systems and supporting small businesses.
For some rallygoers, the spirit of the event was similar to the sense of community in the early days after Tropical Storm Helene. The $60 billion in estimated damages from the storm and the loss of over 100 community members across Western North Carolina have shaded the campaign for Congress. It is still a raw memory.
“I had neighbors with chainsaws clearing my driveway that I had never met before,” said Weaverville resident Dave Trout, who described himself as an “old-beatnik who’s now a Kennedy-style Democrat.” As the owner of an insurance services firm, Trout said he is reminded everyday of the rising costs of Medicare and Medicaid and the impact of cuts through President Donald Trump’s “One Big Beautiful Bill” and the long-term impacts of Helene.
“It affects not only me personally, but everyone I’m responsible for,” Trout said.
Though the election is six months away, Buttigieg highlighted other political vulnerabilities the incumbent Republican party faces. Shifting economic winds, largely stemming from the war in Iran, have increased the cost of everyday items and gas. President Donald Trump is unpopular, with a roughly 37% approval rating, a recent The New York Times/Siena University poll found.
Ager is aiming to be the first Democrat to win the seat since former NFL Quarterback Heath Shuler won the district in 2006, unseating eight-term incumbent Charles Taylor in a campaign that largely focused on pocketbook issues. Ager said recent comparisons are probably because of his roots in the area. Ager, like Shuler, is a Western North Carolina native.
“I’m from here — people know me for better, for worst, right?” Ager told the Citizen Times. “I can’t fake it.”
Ager’s grandfather Jamie Clarke served three nonconsecutive terms in Congress from 1983-85 and from 1987-91. Ager’s father, John Ager, served in the NC House from 2015-2023.
Buttigieg thinks Ager’s background, and his practical
“We’ve got to make sure that we are supporting leaders who are deeply rooted in a sense of place, who speak for the values of their community and understand politics is not a blood sport — it’s about problem solving,” Buttigieg said.
“That’s Jamie Ager’s approach,” he continued.
Reporting by Will Hofmann, Asheville Citizen Times / Asheville Citizen Times
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
