A Democratic candidate for the North Carolina legislature remains on the November ballot, even after party leaders withdrew their support over inflammatory social media posts that recently resurfaced.
The North Carolina House Democratic Caucus and the Guilford County Democratic Party condemned remarks attributed to Shelly Headen, including a call for an attack on U.S. soil aimed at red states and comparisons between President Donald Trump and Nazi leader Adolf Hitler.
Despite the party backlash, Headen cannot remove her name from the race. The deadline to withdraw passed Aug. 20, while finalized general-election ballots began reaching voters Sept. 4.
Head en is challenging Republican state Rep. John Blust for the House District 62 seat, which includes parts of Greensboro and Guilford County. In a post from about a year ago, she wrote that the country’s “only hope” might be an attack on American soil, preferably in “Alabama, Louisiana … where the stupid people live.”
In other posts, Headen said the harm caused by Trump was approaching the level associated with Hitler and suggested that the “MAGA cult” could be even more destructive and evil than the Nazis.
Breitbart also reported on a Facebook image showing Headen at the Dachau concentration camp memorial in Germany, where tens of thousands were killed during World War II. The image included text stating, “This is where Trump supporters belong.”
Speaking with the Greensboro News and Record last week, Headen denied creating or posting the concentration-camp image. She said she believed the wording had been digitally added to an authentic photograph.
The controversy gained wider national attention earlier this week after the White House Rapid Response account, which promotes Trump, reposted Headen’s remarks on X and accused Democrats of being “SICK PEOPLE!”
Michael Whatley, the Republican nominee for U.S. Senate in North Carolina, shared a photo of Headen alongside former Gov. Roy Cooper, the Democratic Senate candidate. Whatley argued that Cooper still supported a North Carolina Democrat who had called for the genocide of Republicans, describing the alleged position as contrary to American values.
Cooper’s campaign responded that the comments were “reprehensible,” saying he strongly condemned them, rejected all political violence and believed everyone had a responsibility to speak carefully and responsibly.
Head en, a certified public accountant and small-business owner, told North Carolina public radio station WFDD that she did not recall writing the posts. She apologized to anyone hurt by the remarks and said she understood why Democratic leaders had decided to withdraw their backing.
In a separate interview with The Assembly, a North Carolina digital news outlet, Headen took a more defiant position, characterizing the posts as the product of “a few angry moments.”
She also told The Assembly that she had “sacrificed myself just like Jesus sacrificed Himself on the cross,” comparing her experience with the sacrifices made by Martin Luther King Jr., Abraham Lincoln and others who acted on behalf of the country.
“If a few angry moments on social media are the end, then so be it,” Headen said, adding that MAGA would continue to win if people failed to stand up for what they believed was right.
The Assembly’s report was published before North Carolina Democratic leaders formally announced that they were ending their support for Headen.
The state House Democratic Caucus said Headen’s posts were unacceptable and did not represent the standards or values expected of its candidates. It condemned the remarks without qualification and said it would no longer support her campaign.
The Guilford County Democratic Party likewise said the posts violated everything the organization represented. The county group immediately ended all financial, operational and organizational assistance to Headen’s campaign.
Head en told Fox News Digital earlier this week that she had received death threats in recent days, though she declined to provide additional comments about the posts.
In an article published Thursday by The Rhino Times, Headen said the threats had left her focused on protecting herself and her family. “My whole world has been collapsing,” she said.
She also confirmed that she had removed her social media accounts, saying she no longer had access to any of them.
Republicans have spotlighted the controversy.
North Carolina House Speaker Destin Hall called Headen’s comments “Absolutely disgusting.”
And the North Carolina House Republicans wrote on X, “Democrat Shelly Headen who is “Running to Restore Human Decency” just posted that she wants an attack on US soil. It is unclear whether Shelly would prefer ISIS or China to attack the United States, but it’s clear she wants an attack.”
Meanwhile, the popular conservative X account Libs of TikTok argued that Headen “should drop out immediately. She doesn’t belong anywhere public office.”
The attention over the resurfaced comments comes a week after Headen faced a separate controversy following a move by State House Republicans to release two 2024 Guilford County Sheriff’s Office incident reports involving her and her husband, Gregory Thomas Headen.
The reports, which identify the alleged domestic offense as physical assault, list Headen as the suspect and her husband as the potential victim.
In a statement she released earlier this month, Headen said that during a stressful time in their marriage, she and her husband had “a couple of arguments that escalated.” She said that, during one argument, her husband grabbed her, causing her to fall backward and hit her head. She then called 911.
Headen, in her statement, described herself as having experienced abuse. And she argued that Republicans were using a private family matter for political gain.
