Progressive firebrand concedes in cliffhanger North Carolina congressional primary battle with incumbent Dem

Progressive Durham County Commissioner Nida Allam conceded Wednesday after challenging U.S. Rep. Valerie Foushee in a high-profile, razor-thin North Carolina congressional 4th District Democratic primary race.

In a fiery statement posted to social media, Allam accused Democrats of "caving to corporate Super PACs and warmongering lobbies," claiming it was only because of her campaign that Foushee, 69, decided to take "bold stances that voters overwhelmingly support."

Among Allam's provocative stances were labeling the Gaza war "genocide," abolishing U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), and defunding the war with Iran.

"We must demand [Foushee] not spend a single taxpayer dollar on forever wars," Allam wrote. "We must demand she actually call the genocide in Gaza what it is: a genocide. We must demand she fight to abolish ICE as they kidnap and murder our neighbors, not just take away their face masks and some of their funding."

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The 32-year-old, who first ran against Foushee in 2022, went on to describe the present climate as "a time of rising Islamophobia, xenophobia, and derision that have meant to divide our communities against each other," saying the movement she created points to "a brighter future we could believe in."

Foushee scored 49.2% of the Democratic vote and Allam secured 48.2%, with 99% of the expected vote tallied, NBC News reported.

Compared to the 2022 primary, Allam said her campaign drove a 55% increase in turnout for voters under 40 during early voting, and an overall increase in total turnout of almost 40%. More than 60,000 voters turned out to vote for her campaign.

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"While we may not have won this race, the establishment should stay on watch," she wrote. "Our movement sounded the alarm for future Democratic primaries throughout this cycle."

"For every person who has never seen themselves in our political system, I want you to see that if a young, Muslim, immigrant woman in the South — who is willing to take on the establishment directly — can achieve what our campaign was able to and more, then anything is possible," Allam continued.

Allam entered the Democratic primary for North Carolina's deep-blue congressional 4th District with endorsements from Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., and progressive groups including the Justice Democrats, Leaders We Deserve, Sunrise Movement, Indian American Impact and the Working Families Party.

Leaders We Deserve has led a nationwide effort to elect young, progressive candidates to Congress and statewide legislatures, endorsing other Democrats, including New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani.

Allam received nearly $2 million in support from Leaders We Deserve, Justice Democrats, the Working Families Party and the American Priorities PAC, according to the report.

Foushee, who garnered support from North Carolina Gov. Josh Stein, former Gov. Roy Cooper and a slew of representatives, received more than $1.6 million from Jobs and Democracy PAC — a super PAC pushing for AI regulation.

Following Allam's concession, Foushee released a statement saying she was "deeply humbled" that the Democratic voters of the 4th District nominated her to serve a third term. 

"I respect our primary system, but I am grateful my constituents have rejected the baseless attacks from out-of-state groups that my family and I have had to endure," Foushee wrote. "My priorities are to stop Trump’s attacks on our democracy, regulate AI, overturn Citizens United, establish a Green New Deal, ensure Medicare for All, pass legislation to block arms sales to Israel, and lower the cost of groceries, housing and education. Nothing will ever change that."

"In a state where many people’s rights are on the ballot in November, now is the time for our district to unify in support of Roy Cooper and others who are fighting to flip seats blue," she continued. "While elites and authoritarians continue to exploit our communities, we have an opportunity to deliver a crushing blow if we can all come together. … Fighting for your priorities in Congress has been, and will always be, my sole focus. Thank you for giving me the honor of being your voice in Washington for another term."

Allam's campaign did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital's request for comment.

Fox News Digital's Deirdre Heavey contributed to this report.

source https://www.foxnews.com/politics/progressive-firebrand-concedes-cliffhanger-north-carolina-primary-battle-incumbent-dem