Durham DA may face Nov. challenger

Mike Nifong, the Durham, N.C., district attorney prosecuting three Duke University lacrosse players in the alleged rape of an exotic dancer, faces a political challenge in his November try for re-election because of the way he handled the case.

A group of Durham County residents gathered 10,000 signatures, submitting petitions in time to secure a spot on the November ballot for Lewis Cheek, a lawyer and county commissioner, Cheek said yesterday.

Cheek's name - the only other on the ballot besides Nifong - will stay although he hasn't decided whether to run. Cheek, who like Nifong is a Democrat, will be listed as an unaffiliated candidate.

Three players, Collin Finnerty, 19, of Garden City, Reade Seligmann, 20, of Essex Fells, N.J., and David Evans, 23, of Bethesda, Md., have been accused of raping a dancer at a March 13 off-campus party.

"The issues that caused people to come to talk to me about the possibility of running for DA were raised by the Duke lacrosse case," Cheek said yesterday from his Durham office. Nifong has been criticized for his early appearances and public disclosures in the case, before the indictments and while he was mounting a primary campaign.

On June 20, volunteers began seeking signatures to get his name on the ballot. They needed at least 6,400, but within 10 days they gathered about 10,000 signatures, he said. "I told them I would seriously consider that, and that's the most I would do. "

Cheek ran three successful local campaigns, winning City Council elections twice - serving from 1999 to 2003 - then winning as county commissioner, taking office in 2004. Cheek said his supporters do not include the families of Duke lacrosse players, or others associated with the team. If he runs, he said he would decline any campaign donations from Duke lacrosse families.