From Staff Reports 

FLAT ROCK, N.C. — Democratic candidate Jamie Ager and Republican State Rep. Jennifer Balkcom shared the stage for the first time on Aug. 27 in their first joint public forum for North Carolina’s 11th Congressional District race in Blue Ridge Community College’s Thomas Auditorium.

About 100 people attended the one-hour event.

Ager is a fourth-generation farmer, specializing in beef, and owner of Hickory Nut Gap Farm in Fairview (located in Buncombe County), where he lives with his family.

Balkcom, who has served two terms representing the 117th House district in the North Carolina General Assembly, works as a branch manager and mortgage loan officer for ALCOVA Mortgage. She says she is an eighth-generation Henderson County native and lifelong resident who grew up living at and working on her family’s small apple farm in the Dana community. She lives with her husband and children in Henderson County’s Naples community.

The event, hosted by Agribusiness Henderson County at Blue Ridge Community College, focused entirely on agriculture and farming issues in Western North Carolina.

Key takeaways from the forum included the following:

• Immigration positions: The most notable policy differentiation emerged around agricultural labor and immigration. Ager advocated for meaningful, long-term immigration reform, calling it a root-cause solution. Balkcom emphasized border security and legal channels as the primary way to supply and protect farm workers.

• Format: The moderated event featured pre-prepared questions with no live questions allowed from the audience.

• Agriculture backgrounds: Both candidates highlighted their deep ties to the local farming community — Balkcom comes from an eighth-generation farming family, while Ager is a fourth-generation farmer.

Regarding the race context, this was the first time the candidates met since Balkcom was selected by the GOP executive committee on Aug. 10.

She replaced incumbent U.S. Rep. Chuck Edwards, R-Flat Rock, on the November ballot after Edwards withdrew following a House Ethics Committee report finding substantial evidence of sexual harassment.

Balkcom enters the race needing to rapidly build districtwide name recognition and close a massive financial gap, as Ager entered the summer with a $2.2 million fundraising advantage. 

While the district has safely leaned Republican since 2013, political analysts consider the seat a highly competitive toss-up for the Nov. 3 general election.