{"id":6625,"date":"2022-04-11T17:10:04","date_gmt":"2022-04-11T21:10:04","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/9thstreetjournal.org\/?p=6625"},"modified":"2023-03-27T15:59:21","modified_gmt":"2023-03-27T15:59:21","slug":"in-a-bid-for-congress-aiken-seeks-a-different-kind-of-stage","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/9thstreetjournal.org\/2022\/04\/11\/in-a-bid-for-congress-aiken-seeks-a-different-kind-of-stage\/","title":{"rendered":"In a bid for Congress, Aiken seeks a different kind of stage"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-6630 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/sites.duke.edu\/9thstreetjournal\/files\/2022\/04\/Clay_Headshot-e1649711560152.jpeg\" alt=\"\" width=\"1000\" height=\"938\" srcset=\"https:\/\/9thstreetjournal.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/04\/Clay_Headshot-e1649711560152.jpeg 1000w, https:\/\/9thstreetjournal.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/04\/Clay_Headshot-e1649711560152-300x281.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/9thstreetjournal.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/04\/Clay_Headshot-e1649711560152-768x720.jpeg 768w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px\" \/>\u201cIt\u2019s funny to me that I\u2019m still stuck in so many people\u2019s minds sometimes as the 24-year-old from \u2018Idol,\u2019\u201d chuckled Clay Aiken.\u201cThe more important thing to me that came out of \u2018Idol\u2019<\/span> <span style=\"font-weight: 400\">was the ability it gave me to talk about issues that were important to me and bring attention to those.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Aiken, now 43, may have gained prominence as an \u201cAmerican Idol\u201d fan favorite. But before \u201cIdol,\u201d he worked at the YMCA, where he became interested in children with special needs. These days, Aiken says his life centers on his organization for children with special needs, the National Inclusion Project. The program works with organizations to include children with disabilities in recreational programs, like camps.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Now, Aiken wants to use his platform for politics.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u201cI was waiting and expecting someone who would jump in who would have some sort of powerful statewide voice or the proven ability to bring attention to issues, because I don&#8217;t think people in this district really realize how much David Price has done over the past 35 years,\u201d Aiken said.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">The source of Aiken\u2019s name recognition differs from that of U.S. Rep David Price, but he believes he can bring the same benefits to district residents. If elected to represent North Carolina&#8217;s 4th District in Congress, Aiken would ensure the district maintains access to infrastructure funds and housing funds, especially as housing prices skyrocket.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">He would also reform education funding. Title I, which supports underfunded schools, has \u201cincentivized school districts to create high poverty schools\u201d in order to get more money, he said.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">This is not Aiken\u2019s first run for Congress. He said his commitment to fairer election maps prompted him to run in 2014 against Rep. Rennee Ellmers (R) in North Carolina\u2019s 2nd District. Aiken views the issue of voting rights as urgent, and would vote for both the John Lewis Voting Rights Act and the more sweeping H.R.1, which would reform voting rights and election administration.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u201cWe need to accept as much progress as we can make in this area right now, because we can\u2019t really wait anymore,\u201d Aiken said.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">Aiken laments how Democrats waited to act on other pressing issues such as climate change, gun violence and police brutality. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400\">\u201cI think Democrats have a tendency, over the past four years, to be a bit superficial when it comes to making progress,\u201d he said. \u201cI\u2019m all for symbolic victories, but symbolic victories don\u2019t do much to save anyone\u2019s lives and protect people.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><em>Editor&#8217;s note: Read more about the contest to represent North Carolina&#8217;s 4th Congressional District <a href=\"https:\/\/9thstreetjournal.org\/2022\/04\/11\/race-for-rep-david-prices-congressional-seat-draws-a-crowded-field\/\">here<\/a>.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n<p><strong>Photo courtesy of Clay Aiken<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>\u201cIt\u2019s funny to me that I\u2019m still stuck in so many people\u2019s minds sometimes as the 24-year-old from \u2018Idol,\u2019\u201d chuckled Clay Aiken.\u201cThe more important thing&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-6625","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-elections-2022","entry"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v23.8 - 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