California state Senator Aisha Wahab will serve out the rest of former representative Eric Swalwell’s term after securing victory Thursday in a special election.
Swalwell, a pro-Israel Democrat who was running for California governor, ended his campaign and resigned from Congress in April after he was accused of sexual assault and harassment, which he denies. 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 will be the first Afghan American to serve in Congress. The progressive Democrat 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, including by the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, or AIPAC. She said her victory showed her district “cannot be bought.”
“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.”
Hernandez’s campaign did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
