Aisha Wahab Secures Congress Seat After Winning California Special Election
California state Sen. Aisha Wahab will complete the remainder of former Rep. Eric Swalwell’s term after winning a special election held Thursday.
Swalwell, a Democrat who had been running for California governor, ended his campaign and resigned from Congress in April following accusations of sexual assault and harassment, which he denies. Wahab will now represent California’s 14th Congressional District, covering parts of Alameda County on the eastern side of the San Francisco Bay, through the remainder of Swalwell’s term ending in January.
Wahab becomes the first Afghan American to serve in Congress. The progressive Democrat defeated Bay Area Rapid Transit Director Melissa Hernandez, overcoming a late surge in outside spending against her campaign in the race’s final weeks. “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.” She said the result proves her district “cannot be bought.”
The race’s conclusion comes as criminal investigations into the allegations against Swalwell continue. Federal agents reportedly seized electronic devices from Swalwell at San Francisco International Airport over the weekend and later searched his home in Washington, D.C., according to a person familiar with the matter who spoke on condition of anonymity due to the ongoing investigation. Swalwell’s attorney did not respond to requests for comment.
Wahab first made history in 2018 as the first Afghan American elected to public office in the US, winning a seat on the Hayward City Council. During her time in the state Legislature and throughout her campaign, she has focused heavily on housing affordability and access. In 2023, she authored a bill to ban caste-based discrimination that drew national attention, though Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom vetoed it, arguing existing civil rights protections already covered the issue.
Wahab and Hernandez are set to face off again in November, this time for the next full two-year term. Wahab won June’s primary decisively, but the general election saw a wave of outside spending favor her opponent — groups affiliated with the American Israel Public Affairs Committee spent millions supporting Hernandez and additional funds opposing Wahab.
The two candidates also diverged sharply on foreign policy during the campaign. At an April candidate forum, Wahab said she considered events in Gaza to constitute genocide against Palestinians. Hernandez avoided a direct yes-or-no answer, saying Israel had a right to defend itself following Hamas’s October 2023 attack while acknowledging that “the destruction into Gaza has gone too far.”
Hernandez, a moderate Democrat, said she was proud of running a competitive campaign despite Wahab’s primary win. “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.
