GOP candidate concedes race to Democratic US Rep Don Davis in NC's 1st Congressional District

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — Republican candidate Laurie Buckhout conceded the race for North Carolina's only toss-up congressional district on Wednesday following a tight, closely watched race against incumbent first-term Democratic U.S. Rep. Don Davis.

The Associated Press has not yet called the race. With the vast majority of precincts reporting, Davis and Buckhout were separated by a narrow margin in one of the few competitive districts across the Southeast.

Buckhout issued a statement on X announcing her loss and calling on Davis to work with President-elect Donald Trump's administration on immigration and economic issues. She said she phoned Davis early Wednesday to congratulate him on “his hard-fought victory.”

“While Don and I have different visions, it is obvious to everyone he cares about this district,” she said.

Davis also put out a statement declaring victory and thanking his supporters. He said he looks forward to working with lawmakers on both sides of the aisle in his second term.

“I'm wholeheartedly dedicated to understanding and addressing the challenges and aspirations over everyday citizens in our community,” he said.

The contest between Davis and Buckhout has attracted millions of dollars from both parties to either flip or maintain the district, which extends from Currituck County to a small portion of Granville County in the state's northeast.

The district's political landscape is a bit different for Davis compared to when he defeated Republican opponent Sandy Smith in 2022. Last year, the GOP-controlled state legislature added a handful of conservative-leaning counties to the district, making it less blue than it once was.

Davis was born and raised in Snow Hill and has held various political positions in the region, including as his hometown's mayor and a state senator. He also is a U.S. Air Force veteran.

Buckhout served in the U.S. Army for more than 25 years before retiring and starting a Virginia-based military technology consulting company. She sold the company and moved to Edenton a few years ago.

Both Davis and Buckhout have sought to tie each other to the unpopular policies or controversial behaviors of other candidates in their respective parties.

Buckhout's campaign has repeatedly tried to tie Davis with Vice President Kamala Harris' economic and immigration policies as a way to win over voters dissatisfied with the Biden-Harris administration. Davis voted with House Republicans in July to condemn Harris' work at the U.S.-Mexico border, then endorsed her presidential run a day later. He has also campaigned with her, speaking at one of her rallies in Greenville in October.

Democratic groups supporting Davis, meanwhile, have tried to draw connections between Buckhout and Republican Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson, whose gubernatorial campaign has been fighting back against a CNN report alleging that he made several graphic sexual and racist comments on an online pornography forum about a decade ago. Robinson has denied the claims, and The Associated Press has not independently verified them.

Those groups also have used photos in which Buckhout appears with Robinson to tie her to the lieutenant governor's shifting stance on abortion restrictions. Buckhout has previously said that she's focused on her own race rather than Robinson's.

Sasha Dix shows his "I voted" sticker after he voted at TC Roberson High School on Election Day, Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2024 in Asheville, N.C. (AP Photo/Kathy Kmonicek)

Poll worker Kerri Ryan gives a choice of "I voted" stickers to Sasha Dix after he submitted his ballot at TC Roberson High School on Election Day, Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2024 in Asheville, N.C. (AP Photo/Kathy Kmonicek)

Poll worker, Genevieve Bieniosek helps a voter with curbside voting outside the West Asheville Public Library on Election Day, Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2024 in Asheville, N.C. (AP Photo/Kathy Kmonicek)

Glyn Hughes, left, gives Republican ballot information to Peter Dolan who came with his children, Zoe, left and P.J. to vote this morning at Reynolds Middle School on Election Day, Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2024 in Asheville, N.C. (AP Photo/Kathy Kmonicek)

A voter leaves a polling place at St. James Episcopal Church in Black Mountain, N.C. on Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2024. The town near Asheville was among the many hard hit by Hurricane Helene, and the church was hosting two displaced precincts. (AP Photo/Allen G. Breed)

Voters walk through rows of political signs outside of TC Roberson High School on Election Day, Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2024 in Asheville, N.C. (AP Photo/Kathy Kmonicek)

Four-year-old Stone Smathers, center, waits for his parents to finish voting, Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2024, in Canton, N.C. (AP Photo/George Walker IV)

University of North Carolina at Asheville student, Elijah Walker-Haigh, left, speaks with advocates for Vice President Kamala Harris, Greg Horwitch, middle, and David Dean outside the West Asheville Public Library on Election Day, Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2024 in Asheville, N.C. (AP Photo/Kathy Kmonicek)

Zeb Smathers, shows a ballot to his 4-year-old son, Stone Smathers, while voting, Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2024, in Canton, N.C. (AP Photo/George Walker IV)

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — U.S. President Donald Trump said Iran wants to negotiate with Washington after his threat to strike the Islamic Republic over its bloody crackdown on protesters, a move coming as activists said Monday the death toll in the nationwide demonstrations rose to at least 544.

Iran had no immediate reaction to the news, which came after the foreign minister of Oman — long an interlocutor between Washington and Tehran — traveled to Iran this weekend. It also remains unclear just what Iran could promise, particularly as Trump has set strict demands over its nuclear program and its ballistic missile arsenal, which Tehran insists is crucial for its national defense.

Meanwhile Monday, Iran called for pro-government demonstrators to head to the streets in support of the theocracy, a show of force after days of protests directly challenging the rule of 86-year-old Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Iranian state television aired chants from the crowd, who shouted “Death to America!” and “Death to Israel!”

Trump and his national security team have been weighing a range of potential responses against Iran including cyberattacks and direct strikes by the U.S. or Israel, according to two people familiar with internal White House discussions who were not authorized to comment publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity.

“The military is looking at it, and we’re looking at some very strong options,” Trump told reporters on Air Force One on Sunday night. Asked about Iran’s threats of retaliation, he said: “If they do that, we will hit them at levels that they’ve never been hit before.”

Trump said that his administration was in talks to set up a meeting with Tehran, but cautioned that he may have to act first as reports of the death toll in Iran mount and the government continues to arrest protesters.

“I think they’re tired of being beat up by the United States,” Trump said. “Iran wants to negotiate.”

He added: “The meeting is being set up, but we may have to act because of what’s happening before the meeting. But a meeting is being set up. Iran called, they want to negotiate.”

Iran through country's parliamentary speaker warned Sunday that the U.S. military and Israel would be “legitimate targets” if America uses force to protect demonstrators.

More than 10,600 people also have been detained over the two weeks of protests, said the U.S.-based Human Rights Activists News Agency, which has been accurate in previous unrest in recent years and gave the death toll. It relies on supporters in Iran crosschecking information. It said 496 of the dead were protesters and 48 were with security forces.

With the internet down in Iran and phone lines cut off, gauging the demonstrations from abroad has grown more difficult. The Associated Press has been unable to independently assess the toll. Iran’s government has not offered overall casualty figures.

Those abroad fear the information blackout is emboldening hard-liners within Iran’s security services to launch a bloody crackdown. Protesters flooded the streets in the country’s capital and its second-largest city on Saturday night into Sunday morning. Online videos purported to show more demonstrations Sunday night into Monday, with a Tehran official acknowledging them in state media.

In Tehran, a witness told the AP that the streets of the capital empty at the sunset call to prayers each night. By the Isha, or nighttime prayer, the streets are deserted.

Part of that stems from the fear of getting caught in the crackdown. Police sent the public a text message that warned: “Given the presence of terrorist groups and armed individuals in some gatherings last night and their plans to cause death, and the firm decision to not tolerate any appeasement and to deal decisively with the rioters, families are strongly advised to take care of their youth and teenagers.”

Another text, which claimed to come from the intelligence arm of the paramilitary Revolutionary Guard, also directly warned people not to take part in demonstrations.

“Dear parents, in view of the enemy’s plan to increase the level of naked violence and the decision to kill people, ... refrain from being on the streets and gathering in places involved in violence, and inform your children about the consequences of cooperating with terrorist mercenaries, which is an example of treason against the country,” the text warned.

The witness spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity due to the ongoing crackdown.

The demonstrations began Dec. 28 over the collapse of the Iranian rial currency, which trades at over 1.4 million to $1, as the country’s economy is squeezed by international sanctions in part levied over its nuclear program. The protests intensified and grew into calls directly challenging Iran’s theocracy.

Nikhinson reported from aboard Air Force One.

In this frame grab from video obtained by the AP outside Iran, a masked demonstrator holds a picture of Iran's Crown Prince Reza Pahlavi during a protest in Tehran, Iran, Friday, January. 9, 2026. (UGC via AP)

In this frame grab from footage circulating on social media from Iran shows protesters taking to the streets despite an intensifying crackdown as the Islamic Republic remains cut off from the rest of the world in Tehran, Iran, Friday, Jan. 9, 2026.(UGC via AP)

In this frame grab from footage circulating on social media from Iran showed protesters once again taking to the streets of Tehran despite an intensifying crackdown as the Islamic Republic remains cut off from the rest of the world in Tehran, Iran, Saturday Jan. 10, 2026. (UGC via AP)