American Idol alum Clay Aiken
received the most votes Tuesday in the Democratic primary for the
U.S. House in North Carolina's 2nd congressional district,
but a narrow lead has kept the AP from declaring him the winner.
“Democratic congressional primary
race in North Carolina featuring Clay Aiken too close to call,” the
news agency tweeted early Wednesday morning.
With 100 percent of precincts
reporting, Aiken received 11,649 votes (40.84%), while his closest
rival, former state Commerce secretary Keith Crisco, received 11,277
(39.53%).
Candidates in North Carolina must
receive 40 percent of the vote to avoid a run-off election.
The 35-year-old Aiken, who is looking
to unseat Rep. Renee Ellmers, a Republican, thanked supporters on
Tuesday night.
“We are feeling incredibly
comfortable tonight. We are comfortable not only with the results
we've seen this evening. We are comfortable not only with how we'll
feel tomorrow morning. But more than anything, we're comfortable
with the way this campaign was run,” Aiken said.
Aiken, who came out gay in 2008, five
years after his second-place Idol finish, on the cover of
People magazine, announced his congressional bid in a
YouTube.com video on February 5. In the 5-minute video, he said that
he does not believe his sexual orientation will become a campaign
issue.