The Triad’s biggest cities do not have citizen-accessible Congressional offices — one of the many results of redistricting across the state.
Local district offices are places where constituents can go for one-on-one help without having to go to Washington, D.C. Maybe they need assistance with a passport — or help managing their VA claims, says Wake Forest University Professor of Politics and International Affairs John Dinan.
"Congressional district offices pride themselves on being able to cut through bureaucratic red tape and get answers that an ordinary citizen might have difficulty getting answers to through the bureaucracy," he says.
Residents of Winston-Salem, Greensboro and High Point typically had an office close by. But redistricting vastly changed the face of Congress and as a result, the layout of district offices.
For Triad-area representatives, they’re now in more rural locations.
So let’s break it down. For years, 5th District Rep. Virginia Foxx had an office in Clemmons, just outside of Winston-Salem. Her district no longer includes Clemmons and she now has local offices in Boone and Mayodan.
Rep. Richard Hudson’s 9th District includes part of High Point as well as eastern Guilford. He has offices in the Moore County town of Southern Pines and Fayetteville. Tenth District Rep. Pat Harrigan, whose district reaches into most of western Forsyth, has an office in Hickory.
Greensboro has recently been represented by Democrat Kathy Manning, who had a local office there. The 6th District is now represented by Republican Addison McDowell, a Davidson County native who plans to open an office soon. It will be in Lexington, a spokesman for McDowell says.
Dinan notes that there are many factors that go into the decision of where politicians put their local offices. But leaving them outside of population centers comes with a risk.
”It's electorally, very, very beneficial, scholars have shown, to have a reputation as someone who will help people solve problems," he says. "So it does make a difference that the Triad will not have a House member’s office directly in a Triad area,”
Dinan says the local offices are more for people seeking help than expressing political views. But not always.
U.S. Sen. Thom Tillis does maintain an office in Greensboro. It’s become a target of peaceful protesters since the inauguration.