Valerie Foushee wins US House District 4 Democratic primary election

State Sen. Valerie Foushee has won the Democratic primary in the U.S. House District 4 race. The Democratic primary for the U.S. House District 4 race virtually guarantees the winner will become the next member of Congress representing the safe blue district.

The Associated Press called Foushee the winner shortly after 9 p.m. Foushee led with about 50% of the vote most of the night.

Foushee had been one of the front-runners during the campaign, along with Durham County Commissioner Nida Allam and singer Clay Aiken. Early voting tallies showed Allam in second place and Aiken a distant third.

As of 9 p.m., Foushee had 27,062 votes, with 46 of 152 precincts reporting; followed by Allam with 33% of the vote and Aiken with 7%.

If a candidate didn’t receive more than 30% of the vote, the second place finisher could request a runoff election.

Foushee will succeed retiring Congressman David Price, who served the district for 30 years. Foushee, like Price, is from Orange County. She served on the Orange County Board of Commissioners before running for state Senate, where she holds leadership positions in the Legislative Black Caucus and Senate Democratic Caucus.

Foushee received millions of dollars in super PAC money from pro-Israel AIPAC and Protect Our Future, the super PAC mostly funded by a crypto-billionaire. The money went to a flood of broadcast, digital and print advertisements in the last few weeks before the primary. Foushee also received several endorsements including from retiring U.S. Congressman G.K. Butterfield, the Congressional Black Caucus and several other lawmakers and elected officials.

Allam, who is the first Muslim woman to be elected to any office in North Carolina, previously worked for the Bernie Sanders campaign and received his endorsement as well as U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts. Allam, at 28, has been one of the youngest candidates for federal office and is also pregnant with a daughter. She represents the most progressive wing of the Democratic Party, receiving endorsements from “The Squad,” a group of Congress members that includes Reps. Ilhan Omar and Rashida Tlaib, who have both endorsed Allam.

Aiken grew up in the Triangle, started off as a special education teacher and became known for his time on “American Idol” and “Celebrity Apprentice.” He has criticized the amount of outside spending in the election that benefits Foushee.

Five other candidates vying for the Democratic nomination were Ashley Ward, Richard Watkins, Matt Grooms, Crystal Cavalier and Stephen J. Valentine.

Republican primary

Republican candidates for the 4th district primary are Courtney Geels and Robert Thomas.

For more North Carolina government and politics news, listen to the Under the Dome politics podcast from The News & Observer and the NC Insider. You can find it at https://campsite.bio/underthedome or wherever you get your podcasts.