Marine vs. Marine in the 3rd

The Republican primary for N.C. House District 3 has two former Marines squaring off against each other. The seat, occupied by Tea Party firebrand Mike Speciale, has been under Republican control since Norm Sanderson unseated Alice Underhill during the GOP sweep of Raleigh in 2011.
Speciale, a former Marine who has been unpopular among Democrats and traditional Republicans but loved by everyone else, has been noted for being outspoken and divisive, quite a change from the affable Sanderson, who went on to become a state senator, and the even more affable Underhill.

Seizing on Speciale’s precarious position, New Bern resident and retired U.S. Marine Bronze Star recipient Eric Queen announced he will challenge Speciale in the Republican Primary for the N.C. House District #3 position.
The primary election will be May 8.
“I believe the voters in Eastern North Carolina are ready for a change and want to put a Common-Sense Conservative in the General Assembly.  It is time to elect a Representative that has beliefs and priorities that are actually in line with the voters he or she will represent. I am confident the voters will see that I am that candidate”
Queen’s website goes further, describing other candidates as having “extreme right or left wing views that do not match the beliefs of the very people they claim to represent.”
Queen retired in New Bern after serving 21 years in the Marine Corps 14 years as a military police officer and seven years as an infantryman.  Queen spent seven of those years at Cherry Point, including his final duty station serving as the Military Police Services Chief.
Queen and his wife Carrie married in 2000 and have three children Alexis (17), Alyssa (16), and Eric (14). More about Queen on his website, here, and Facebook, here.
More about Speciale, who also lives in New Bern, on his website, here, and Facebook, here.