Clay Aiken announces run for Congress

Clay Aiken

February 5, 2014 By Mark Franklin 0

American Idol finalists have landed in movies, on Broadway and in Vegas.

Now, for the first time, one is entering politics.

Clay Aiken announced plans to run for Congress on Wednesday. (AP Photo)

Season 2 runner-up Clay Aiken announced Wednesday that he’ll run for Congress in North Carolina.

He’s seeking to unseat Republican Congresswoman Renee Ellmers, but he isn’t alone in that quest.

The 35-year-old will face at least two other candidates who plan to seek the Democratic nomination, including a former state commerce secretary.

Aiken told The News & Observer that he will put his entertainment career on hold for the course of the campaign and is running because he considers Washington “dysfunctional.”

“I think it’s high time we put people in Congress who were not beholden to their party, and not beholden to anything but the people who they live around and grew up around, in my case,” he told the newspaper.

For those who wonder about his qualifications for elected office, Clay posted the well-done video below to explain.