Rep. John Boehner of Ohio, the man who would succeed Nancy Pelosi as Speaker of the House if Republicans win majority control in November, is coming to Maryland this weekend to fundraise for Andy Harris.

Harris, the veteran Baltimore County lawmaker challenging Democratic Rep. Frank Kratovil in Maryland's First Congressional District (Eastern Shore and parts of Baltimore, Anne Arundel and Harford counties), has gotten plenty of high-level House Republican help already.

Among those who have headlined Harris' fundraising events are Minority Whip Eric Cantor of Virginia, the number two Republican in the House, and Republican Conference Chairman Mike Pence of Indiana, who ranks third.

Boehner's visit on Saturday will complete the troika. The event, which has not been announced by the Harris campaign, is invitation-only and closed to the press.

Harris has embraced his party's national tactic of making Nancy Pelosi (rather than the more personally popular Barack Obama) the main target of attack. Having the support of her putative replacement could help reinforce that message of leadership change, though keeping the event private will mute the voter impact.