Bill Graham stressed that he's an outsider in his introductory remarks.
The Salisbury attorney argued that the other two candidates are Raleigh insiders.
"I'm the outsider," he said. "I'm not the one from Raleigh and that's what's different about me, and I want all of you to know that as we go through that debate."
He said the state government has failed to reduce taxes, control illegal immigration, address the high school dropout race and help people get health care.
State Sen. Fred Smith said he wanted to run a campaign that is a "conversation with the people," plugging his autobiography and his 100-county barbecue tour across the state in his introduction.
"If we're going to win this election, we need to draw a bold line in the sand," he said.
On the left would be "liberal Democrats" who believe in higher taxes and more government control; on the right would be "free, risk-taking, self-reliant, hard-working, God-loving" people.
Former Supreme Court Justice Bob Orr stressed that he has won four statewide elections.
He said he was asked by someone why he would choose to run for governor. He said that it is important to reform public education, fix the transportation system and create new jobs.
"I've told people throughout this campaign that yes, this is about the next four years, but in reality, it's about the next 20, 25 years," he said.
