A North Carolina Democrat is facing a furious backlash after social media posts bearing her name called for an attack on conservative states and suggested violence against Trump supporters. Shelly Headen, the Democratic nominee for North Carolina House District 62, lost the support of both the North Carolina House Democratic Caucus and the Guilford County Democratic Party after the posts resurfaced. Party officials condemned the comments without qualification, but Headen will remain on the November ballot.
Headen is challenging Republican state Rep. John Blust in a competitive district covering part of Guilford County. Blust won the district in 2024 by fewer than seven percentage points, making the seat important to Democrats seeking greater control of the North Carolina House. Republicans currently hold 71 of the chamber’s 120 seats, leaving them one vote short of the three-fifths majority needed to override a gubernatorial veto without outside support.
The backlash hinged on a Facebook comment in which Headen reportedly wrote, “I think our only hope is an attack on US soil… preferably Alabama, Louisiana… where the stupid people live.” The comment appeared in a political Facebook group beneath a post arguing that the United States needed to be “put in its place.” Headen later said she didn’t remember writing the comment or know whether it was authentic, although it reportedly remained publicly visible when the controversy erupted.
Fox News contributor Hugh Hewitt addressed the uproar during a Sunday segment after the comments began spreading nationally. As Fox News reported, the posts included inflammatory statements directed at President Donald Trump’s supporters. During the September 13th segment, Hewitt also discussed a poll showing that a majority of Democrats supported the Democratic Socialists of America.
Other posts went beyond the proposed attack on Alabama and Louisiana. According to The Assembly, Headen responded to a discussion about political protest by declaring, “I think America is beyond peaceful protest!” In another comment, she suggested that people who failed to understand opposition to Trump might need to experience sexual assault themselves.
An X account bearing Headen’s name also celebrated Kamala Harris accepting the 2024 Democratic presidential nomination and said it was ready for MAGA supporters to “die off.” Headen denied having an X account, despite the North Carolina House Democratic Caucus previously linking to it. A LinkedIn post bearing her name compared Trump’s actions to those of Adolf Hitler and described the MAGA movement as potentially more destructive than the Nazis.
Watch Hugh Hewitt react to the controversy here:
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The North Carolina House Democratic Caucus quickly abandoned Headen’s campaign once the posts came under scrutiny. Communications director Sam Lozier said the comments were unacceptable, didn’t reflect the caucus’s values, and would cost Headen its support. The Guilford County Democratic Party separately withdrew its financial, operational, and organizational assistance, declaring that references to political violence were “completely indefensible.”
Headen told WFDD that she didn’t remember making the posts but apologized to anyone she says were hurt by them. She said she understood the local party’s decision and that she was fine with being the one person “sacrificed” over the controversy. Headen also said she’d received death threats since the comments resurfaced.
Despite losing institutional support, Headen vowed to continue her campaign and characterized the controversy as stemming from “a few angry moments” online. Removing her name from the ballot is no longer an option because North Carolina’s August 20th withdrawal deadline has passed and absentee ballots began going to voters on September 4th. Her name will remain opposite Blust’s when voters decide the District 62 race on November 3rd.
Featured image credit: screengrab from the embedded video.