Nida Allam Concedes to Valerie Foushee With Razor-Thin Loss for Progressives in Key Midterm Primary
Democratic primary voters in North Carolina stuck with the incumbent backed by the AI lobby over a challenger running against corporate power and AIPAC.
Progressive insurgents lost a close North Carolina primary this week, when Rep. Valerie Foushee, D-N.C., narrowly defeated a challenge from Durham County Commissioner Nida Allam in a race inundated with outside spending from the artificial intelligence industry.
The race had come down to just over 1,000 votes and 1 percentage point as of Thursday morning, with Allam nearly catching up to Foushee in the eleventh hour. After initially saying she would request a recount, Allam conceded to Foushee on Wednesday night, writing on social media that the AI lobby had “bought” the race. Pro-AI groups spent roughly $1.3 million backing Foushee, who is now heavily favored to win the November general election in North Carolina’s Democrat-dominated 4th Congressional District.
In a statement sent to The Intercept, Allam urged her own progressive supp…