Former American Idol star Clay Aiken is running for Congress again


Former American Idol star Clay Aiken's congressional campaign is getting an encore.
Aiken, the singer best known for placing second on American Idol in 2003, announced Monday he's running for Congress in North Carolina again. He previously ran for a North Carolina congressional seat in 2014 and secured a victory in the Democratic primary, but he was defeated in the general election. Incumbent Republican Renee Elmers won re-election with 59 percent of the vote, according to NBC News.
Aiken in his announcement video criticzed "backwards a--" policies in North Carolina, including "the voter suppression bills and the bigoted bathroom bill," and said that "it seems like the loudest voices in North Carolina politics are white nationalists" and "hateful homophobes." He specifically criticized Rep. Madison Cawthorn (R-N.C.), placing him in the former category.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
"As Democrats, we have gotta get better about speaking up and using our voices, because those folks ain't quieting down anytime soon," he said.
According to The Washington Post, Aiken is seeking a seat in a congressional district that was redrawn and is more liberal than the one he previously ran in, though he's jumping into what's likely to be a competitive Democratic primary after Rep. David E. Price (D-N.C.) announced he wouldn't seek re-election. On his campaign website, Aiken praised Price as a "legendary legislator" who leaves "big shoes to fill."
Another difference between this new campaign and Aiken's first is that he's now "emphasizing his bid to become the first openly gay member of Congress from the South," NBC News wrote. He closed his announcement video by showing images of Cawthorn and the state's lieutenant governor, Mark Robinson, as he said, "Just think how excited these guys are gonna be when we elect the South's first gay congressman."
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Brendan worked as a culture writer at The Week from 2018 to 2023, covering the entertainment industry, including film reviews, television recaps, awards season, the box office, major movie franchises and Hollywood gossip. He has written about film and television for outlets including Bloody Disgusting, Showbiz Cheat Sheet, Heavy and The Celebrity Cafe.
-
September 6 editorial cartoons
Cartoons Saturday’s political cartoons include profiting from authoritarianism, and the National Guard entering the CDC
-
Should Britain withdraw from the European Convention on Human Rights?
Talking Point With calls now coming from Labour grandees as well as Nigel Farage and the Tories, departure from the ECHR 'is starting to feel inevitable'
-
5 outspoken cartoons about Epstein survivors taking center stage
Cartoons Artists take on cover-ups, Trump surrounded, and more
-
DC sues Trump to end Guard 'occupation'
Speed Read D.C. Attorney General Brian Schwalb argues that the unsolicited military presence violates the law
-
RFK Jr. faces bipartisan heat in Senate hearing
Speed Read The health secretary defended his leadership amid CDC turmoil and deflected questions about the restricted availability of vaccines
-
White House defends boat strike as legal doubts mount
Speed Read Experts say there was no legal justification for killing 11 alleged drug-traffickers
-
Epstein accusers urge full file release, hint at own list
speed read A rally was organized by Reps. Ro Khanna and Thomas Massie, who are hoping to force a vote on their Epstein Files Transparency Act
-
Court hands Harvard a win in Trump funding battle
Speed Read The Trump administration was ordered to restore Harvard's $2 billion in research grants
-
Florida aims to end all state vaccine requirements
Speed Read Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. continues to cut vaccine access and install anti-vaccine activists at the FDA and CDC
-
US kills 11 on 'drug-carrying boat' off Venezuela
Speed Read Trump claimed those killed in the strike were 'positively identified Tren de Aragua Narcoterrorists' shipping drugs to the US
-
Trump vows to send federal forces to Chicago, Baltimore
Speed Read The announcement followed a California judge ruling that Trump's LA troop deployment was illegal