Clay Aiken Running For Congress (Again), Clearly Needs Infectiously Terrible Campaign Jingle

That’s right, American Idol runner-up Clay Aiken is (once again) running for congress. Aiken, a staunch Democrat, placed second in the 2003 season of American Idol before placing second in his 2014 bid for a Republican-leaning North Carolina congressional district. The singer announced his campaign via a new website, running in a newly redrawn district that leans blue. The news comes after Representative David E. Price, a Democrat who currently represents much of that area, announced his retirement in October.

For context, the last time Aiken ran, he admitted that his campaign was merely a springboard for a reality show about said campaign. His donors nearly sued him.  Then in 2017, he was forced to apologize for defending Donald Trump as “not racist.” He then tweeted “Well… I am a f*****g dumbass.” Hopefully this time, all that’s missing is an infectiously terrible campaign jingle from Aiken himself.

If Aiken Wins, he’ll be the first openly gay congressman in the south. What’s truly hilarious about this whole situation is that Aiken chose to run in perhaps the easiest district to run in. Although this is actually a pretty big deal in terms of diversity, he just wants to be that gay friend who can’t stop telling you he’s gay at every opportunity. It reminds us of the kid who keeps raiding the cookie jar, without replacing the cookies.

So here’s the thing. If Aiken had chosen to run in a red district, we would all probably be applauding him. But by trying to force his way into the state’s bluest district, it feels more like a short-sighted attempt to elbow out other highly qualified candidates. Before calling out republican congress members, he might want to do a little bit of introspection first. If anything, Clay Aiken’s career proves that if you’re not good a winning, just try again.

Cover Photo: Jeffrey A. Camarati / Stringer (Getty Images)