Politics

Aisha Wahab Wins California Special Election to Replace Swalwell

Is this a triumph of people power, a threat to American workers or a warning for Democrats?

Published 1 day ago

Aisha Wahab Wins California Special Election to Replace Swalwell

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Above: Aisha Wahab during an election-night watch party in Hayward, California on Aug. 18. Image credit: Heather Diehl/Getty Images

The Spin

Progressive narrative

Aisha Wahab's win in CA-14 is a landmark moment for a progressive champion who beat back over $6 million in AIPAC-funded smear campaigns to make history as the first Afghan American in Congress. Voters rejected the attacks on her identity and backed her agenda of Medicare for All, affordable housing and civil rights. This is what people power truly looks like.

Cair on X Democracy Now

Right narrative

Wahab's win is a disaster for American workers. She's openly championed H-1B visa expansion while blocking deportations that tens of millions of voters supported. Her socialist platform, backed by CAIR and DSA, threatens to push California's anti-worker, anti-landlord agenda onto the national stage. This district just traded one embarrassment for something even worse.

GiveMeLiberty on X

Breitbart on X

Elizabeth Barcohana on X

Democratic narrative

Wahab's win is a warning for Democrats, as she has shown a willingness to put personal ambition ahead of the party's ability to govern, from asking "What's in it for me?" to refusing a caretaker plan that could have restored the district's House representation sooner. Democrats need a pragmatic partner who can work with the delegation and help hold the seat against MAGA extremists. Hopefully, Hernandez wins in November.

Dustin Gardiner on X Politico