It was a poorly-kept secret in Raleigh for the past four years that Dan Forest was going to run for governor.
As a two-term lieutenant governor, he is term-limited. He made fundraising moves to build a war chest for a run, and he has called out Governor Roy Cooper for policy differences.
It's conceivable however, that he didn't count on having a primary opponent, much less one who was a member of the General Assembly.
He made all the moves to scare off potential primary opponents.
Dan Forest gives us his final argument for why he should be the Republican nominee for governor.