Convicted Sex Offender's Prayer at North Carolina GOP Senate Event Sparks Controversy

A high-profile campaign event for North Carolina Republican Senate nominee Michael Whatley has come under intense scrutiny after a registered sex offender, who was previously imprisoned for offenses involving minors, took the stage to deliver the opening invocation.

The prayer was delivered by Daimon L. King, a 60-year-old local pastor who asked God to bestow honesty and integrity upon the gathering while calling for the righting of wrongs that had been directed against the conservative movement. While political events across North Carolina routinely begin with religious invocations, King's prominent role quickly drew concern once his criminal background came to light.

State and judicial records show that King was twice sentenced to prison following convictions involving children. Approximately 30 years ago, King was charged with statutory rape along with indecent liberties while employed as an assistant for a high school marching band located outside Raleigh.

The incident comes at a critical juncture for Whatley, with the November general election only two months away. The contest between Whatley and his Democratic opponent, former North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper, is widely viewed as a marquee battleground that could determine which political party secures majority control of the United States Senate.

The presence of a convicted sex offender at the rally threatens to undercut one of Whatley’s primary campaign arguments against Cooper. Throughout the race, the Republican nominee has repeatedly sought to brand the former governor as being soft on crime and public safety issues.

In addition, the development provides fresh material for an aggressive advertising blitz by Democrats. Opponents have already been running campaign ads highlighting Whatley's previous association with Harvey L. West Jr., another former Republican Party official who was convicted of sex offenses.

When asked about the rally, Whatley's campaign declined a request to make the candidate available for an interview. However, campaign spokesman DJ Griffin issued a statement seeking to distance Whatley from the pastor and the organization of the event.

Griffin emphasized that Whatley did not know King and asserted that the gathering was neither planned nor organized by the Whatley campaign. The spokesman added that the campaign did not invite any of the guests, explaining that King had been invited directly by the host organization, the Craven County Republican Party. Officials representing the county party could not be reached for comment, and King did not respond to messages seeking an interview.

Whatley previously led the North Carolina Republican Party as state chairman from 2019 until 2024, when former President Donald Trump elevated him to chair the Republican National Committee. Whatley subsequently stepped down from that national post to run for the open Senate seat at Trump’s urging.

The campaign stop took place on August 28 at the Craven County Republican Party headquarters in New Bern, a coastal North Carolina community. The event featured Whatley alongside Dr. Mehmet Oz, the former television personality who now serves as the administrator for the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services under the Trump administration.

King's involvement extended beyond the introductory prayer. In video footage later published on the social media platform X by Whatley's campaign, King could be seen standing prominently in the background as Whatley and Oz spoke out against fraud in the healthcare system. Throughout the speeches, King nodded along in agreement and flashed a double thumbs-up to the crowd.

The following day, King published a glowing assessment of the rally to his church's Facebook group. He wrote that the atmosphere was charged with prayer and patriotism, adding that he and his congregation at the New Beginnings Celebration church in New Bern offer their full support to Whatley's candidacy.

Over recent years, King has taken on an increasingly visible role in conservative political circles, presenting himself as a pro-Trump Black conservative. In addition to serving as a precinct chairman for the Craven County GOP, King has uploaded sermons to YouTube praising Trump, attacking the mainstream media as "fake news," and claiming to preach the unadulterated word of God.

According to political analysts, King's participation and Whatley's past ties to West could create complications as Whatley attempts to solidify his base. Chris Cooper, a political science professor at Western Carolina University who is not related to the Democratic nominee, noted that persistent outrage among Trump's supporters over the Jeffrey Epstein case has heightened sensitivity toward sex crimes on the political right.

Public pressure surrounding the Epstein matter previously led Trump to sign legislation requiring the release of government files concerning the deceased offender's connections with prominent political and business leaders. Professor Cooper observed that hard-right voters have not fully united behind Whatley, warning that revelations of this nature will only make consolidating that essential support more difficult for the Republican campaign.