Aiken to Run For U.S. Congress

Clay Aiken the country singer will announce his campaign on Wednesday for Congress injecting into the race a nationally known personality into what previously had been a quiet primary for the Democrats to come up with a challenger for North Carolina incumbent U.S. Representative Renee Ellmers.

The decision by Aiken to join the race reshaped the field right away. Attorney Houston Barnes from Durham, North Carolina, is planning to announce on Wednesday he will withdraw his candidacy and support Aiken’s effort.

Barnes’ departure leaves just Keith Crisco the former secretary of commerce for North Carolina and Toni Morris a licensed counselor, as the primary opponents of Aiken.

A video will be posted Wednesday online and in a Tuesday interview that will appear in a newspaper on Wednesday, Aiken portrays himself to be someone who is not a professional politician.

He puts more emphasis on his own story of growing up in a home that was full of domestic violence that he says inspired him to be the voice for those who are powerless.

He started his career as a teacher of special education in Wake County and since becoming, an entertainer has worked with UNICEF. Following months of investigating a possible bid for Congress, he decided recently to put his career in entertainment on hold and to run for Congress.

Aiken said this area was the best place he could help, because he thinks Washington in general is dysfunctional.

He believes the U.S. people need to put people on Capitol Hill who are not beholden to the party they represent and not to anything. He wants people that are beholden only to those they represent and those they were raised around, in his case.

Aiken is just 35 and said the economy and jobs would be the themes of his campaign; in specific, emphasizing that education is how to get people back to working, including jobs retraining programs aimed at adults.

He will press the incumbent to explain her record of voting that has cut funding to families of military personnel. He wants her also to discuss other things she has put people in the district through.