The national party establishment appears to be rallying around former sports broadcaster Harold Johnson (R), who is in a primary runoff with millionaire businessman Tim D’Annunzio in the battleground 8th district.

Johnson will be on Capitol Hill today and Wednesday for meetings with National Republican Congressional Committee Chairman Pete Sessions (Texas), members of North Carolina’s Republican delegation and conservative interest groups.

Party insiders view D’Annunzio, who has called for 10 Cabinet-level agencies to be dismantled and posts regularly on a blog called “Christ’s War,” as too controversial to make a credible challenger to freshman Rep. Larry Kissell (D).

D’Annunzio spent about $1 million of his own money on his campaign and took just under 37 percent of the vote in the primary. It was enough for first place, but it was under the 40 percent threshold needed to avoid a runoff on June 22. Johnson won about 33 percent of the vote.