Pence is the headliner of the event for 9th District Congressional candidate Dan Bishop.

Vice President Mike Pence will visit Highland Country Club in Fayetteville for a luncheon on Wednesday to raise money for Republican 9th Congressional District candidate Dan Bishop, according to an invitation to the event.

The fundraiser is coupled with Pence’s visit to Fort Bragg on Wednesday and precedes his afternoon talk with about 500 Special Forces soldiers, support troops and their guests, the White House has previously said.

The luncheon is being presented by Rosalind and Terry Hutchens of Fayetteville, the invitation says. The couple is prominent among Fayetteville Republicans. Terry Hutchens founded the Hutchens law firm in 1980.

Following the Fayetteville luncheon and the appearance at Fort Bragg, Pence is to travel to Greenville to appear at a rally with President Donald Trump.

Bishop, a state senator serving Charlotte, is running against Democrat Dan McCready of Charlotte in this summer’s special election for the 9th Congressional District.

The seat has been vacant since the beginning of the year because the N.C. Board of Elections found evidence of fraud in the collection of absentee ballots in the 2018 elections and ordered that a new election be held.

This luncheon likely is important to Bishop as the do-over election is a high-dollar race, and Bishop’s campaign was far behind in money-raising as of the beginning of the month.

The Associated Press, citing campaign finance reports filed on Monday, said McCready raised $1.37 million since late April, while Bishop raised less than half that: $655,000.

At the start of July, McCready had almost $1.8 million in cash, five times as much as Bishop, the AP said.

To help make up his deficit, Bishop’s Fayetteville fundraiser is charging $1,000 per person, $1,500 per couple, and $10,000 for a “host” level of participation. All the donations include lunch, but the $10,000 donation includes a “host photo opportunity.”

Political consultant Brad Crone told the AP that he expects Bishop to close the financial gap. “At the end of the day, when it comes to media and message, I think you'll have a level playing field going into the general election into September,” he said.

Early voting for the 9th Congressional District starts Aug. 21 and the election day is Sept. 10.

Staff writer Paul Woolverton can be reached at pwoolverton@fayobserver.com or 910-486-3512.