Former NATO Supreme Allied Commander and 2004 Democratic presidential candidate Wesley Clark on Monday entered the North Carolina Senate race fray by endorsing Cal Cunningham in the Democratic primary.

Monday’s endorsement, which also came with a fundraising appeal two days before the first-quarter Federal Election Commission deadline, is the latest example of how the national party is lining up behind the former state legislator in its effort to knock off Sen. Richard Burr (R).

Cunningham, an attorney and captain in the U.S. Army Reserves who served a one-year tour as a military prosecutor in Iraq in 2008, was recruited heavily by the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee even though North Carolina Secretary of State Elaine Marshall (D) was already in the race.

“Cal would be the first veteran of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan to serve in the U.S. Senate,” Clark said in his endorsement Monday. “He would bring a veteran’s unique perspective to policymaking in Washington.”

“Cal knows sexual orientation plays no role on the battlefield, and that it’s time to end ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,'” Clark said.

Attorney Kenneth Lewis is also vying for the Democratic nomination, along with three lower-tier candidates. The primary is May 4.