California lawmaker overcomes pro-Israel spending to win special election

What the report says

California state Senator Aisha Wahab won a special election for the U.S. House seat previously held by Eric Swalwell, according to projections reported by Al Jazeera on Thursday. Wahab defeated moderate Democrat Melissa Hernandez and will serve California’s 14th congressional district, covering part of the southeastern San Francisco Bay Area, for the rest of Swalwell’s term, which runs until January. The special election followed Swalwell’s April resignation after reports of alleged sexual assault, which he denied.

Al Jazeera reported that Wahab’s victory came after a late surge of outside spending aimed at boosting Hernandez. Media reports cited in the article said the United Democracy Project, a super PAC linked to AIPAC, spent nearly $2.5 million since early August, and another AIPAC-funded group, BOLD America, spent about $1.9 million. The article described the race as part of a broader test of pro-Israel political spending in U.S. elections, with several progressive candidates recently outperforming well-funded opposition campaigns.

Wahab, who has focused on housing affordability and social justice issues in the California legislature, is set to become the first Afghan American member of Congress. Her campaign also highlighted her criticism of the war in Gaza; she had previously backed a state resolution condemning the humanitarian situation there and said in a candidate forum that she viewed the violence against Palestinians as genocide. Hernandez did not answer the same question directly, saying Israel had a right to defend itself but that the destruction in Gaza had gone too far.

Wahab and Hernandez are expected to face each other again in November for a full two-year term.