Aisha Wahab has been elected to Congress in a special election following an intra-party competition for the seat formerly held by Eric Swalwell, who resigned in April after facing sexual misconduct allegations. Swalwell has denied the allegations.
Wahab will represent the state’s 14th Congressional District, which covers parts of Alameda County on the eastern side of the San Francisco Bay, through Swalwell’s term ending in January. She is the first Afghan American to serve in Congress.
Wahab has been described as a Progressive Democrat. According to reports, she defeated Bay Area Rapid Transit Director Melissa Hernandez even after a swell of spending by outside groups opposing Wahab in the race’s final stretch. She said her victory shows her district “cannot be bought.”
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“I will fight for this district that raised me,” Wahab said in a statement. “From foster care to Congress, this journey shows the possibility of the American Dream.”
According to the Guardian, Wahab held a major lead throughout the race. However, Hernandez’s campaign saw a boost from super PACs connected to the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC). With 95% of votes counted on Thursday afternoon, Wahab led Hernandez by just over six points in Tuesday’s election to fill the remainder of Swalwell’s term. It was a much closer race than expected.
Wahab, the first Muslim woman and Afghan American elected to the California legislature, told the Guardian there had been a sudden surge of critical ads that had misrepresented her record. She described the Super Pacs’ involvement as election interference, and said they were attempting to buy the seat.
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Wahab became the first Afghan American elected to public office in the U.S. when she won a Hayward City Council seat in 2018. She championed housing affordability and access in her time in the Legislature and throughout her campaign. She also wrote a bill in 2023 to ban caste-based discrimination, which garnered national attention. However, this bill was vetoed by Gov. Gavin Newsom who said that such discrimination is already outlawed by civil rights protections.
Wahab will face off against Hernandez again in a separate November election determining who will serve the next full two-year term.
Hernandez, a moderate Democrat, said she was proud to put up a competitive fight after Wahab’s success in the primary.
“I’ve been a fighter my whole life, and when I promised the residents of CA-14 I would fight for them, I never gave up,” she said in a statement.