Hagan Raises $2 Million + in 4th Quarter; 7 Republicans Now in Race to Replace

U.S. Senator Kay Hagan's campaign announced Tuesday that she raised more than $2 million in the fourth quarter of 2013. 

Hagan ended the quarter with $6.8 million in her campaign coffers, raising more than her potential Republican challengers through September.  And with no major opposition in the May Democratic primary, Hagan will be able to use her campaign war chest primarily for the general election in November.

A half dozen Republicans had announced their candidacies in an attempt to unseat Hagan, but that changed on Tuesday when a seventh candidate entered the fray. Edward Kryn, a retired physician from Clayton, released a statement saying that he is joining the field of GOP candidates.  A native of Canada, who has lived in the United States for more than 17 years, Kryn became an American citizen 9 years ago.  He says he is the "only candidate who has first hand knowledge of government-controlled healthcare." Kryn practiced medicine both in Canada and in the U.S.

The most prominent of Hagan's potential general election challengers  is state House Speaker Thom Tillis.  The other announced candidates are obstetrician Greg Brannon, who has the endorsement of Senator Rand Paul (R-KY);  Baptist minister Mark Harris, who has secured the backing of former Arkansas Governor and GOP presidential candidate Mike Huckabee;  nurse practitioner Heather Grant;  Winston-Salem radio host Bill Flynn, and Ted Alexander, the former mayor of Shelby.