Mitt Romney to campaign in Asheville this week

Republican Mitt Romney is returning to campaign in North Carolina this week.

GOP officials said Monday that Romney will visit Asheville on Thursday. The location is an unlikely stop -- the rural western part of the state and a minor media market -- for the presidential candidate in North Carolina. The Citizen-Times first reported the visit.

Other than a private fundraiser in Raleigh, Romney has yet to campaign east of High Point. His two-stop bus tour in August with newly minted Vice Presidential Pick Paul Ryan hit the Charlotte and Greensboro metro areas. 

Vice President Joe Biden visited Asheville and Charlotte last week.