No Democrat stepped up to challenge Rep. Walter B. Jones last fall. The Republican congressman ran unopposed for a 13th term in North Carolina’s 3rd District.

But Jones’ death last month has triggered a September special election, and some Democrats are giving this military-heavy district another look.

Retired Marine Col. Richard “Otter” Bew announced his candidacy Tuesday, becoming the second Democratic Marine veteran in the race for a seat President Donald Trump carried by nearly 24 points in 2016.

National Democrats targeted three Tar Heel seats last fall and didn’t win any of them, although the 9th District is now headed to a Toss-up special election in September after the state elections board found evidence that the Republican nominee’s campaign tampered with absentee ballots. While Democrats are much more outwardly excited about the 9th District, there’s quiet optimism that the right candidate could make the 3rd District race competitive.

A former legislative assistant to Gen. Joseph F. Dunford Jr., the chairman of the the Chairman of Joint Chiefs of Staff, Bew retired from the Marines last fall after 29 years. He’s served in Afghanistan, Iraq, Bosnia and Serbia, and his military background is a key reason he thinks he has the right profile for a Democrat to carry this district.