AIPAC-backed Democrat loses California House special election to Aisha Wahab

Democrat Aisha Wahab, a California state senator, won a special election for a vacant US House seat, defeating fellow Democrat Melissa Hernandez. The race drew significant outside spending from AIPAC, which backed Hernandez. Wahab will fill the seat of former Representative Eric Swalwell, who resigned amid misconduct allegations. The solidly Democratic district near San Francisco and San Jose will see the two candidates face off again in November for a full term.

Democrat Aisha Wahab, a member of the California state Senate, was projected on Thursday to win a special election to fill a vacant seat in the US House of Representatives, according to multiple US media outlets. Wahab defeated Democrat Melissa Hernandez, an official with the San Francisco Bay Area mass transit system. Once sworn in, Wahab, an Afghan American, will fill the seat that was held by Democratic Representative Eric Swalwell, who resigned in April amid allegations of sexual misconduct, which he denied. That will give Democrats 213 seats in the House, while Republicans will hold 218. The solidly Democratic district is near San Francisco and San Jose. The race drew millions of dollars in outside spending, including from the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, a pro-Israel lobbying group whose super PAC had spent nearly $2.5 million since early August to boost Hernandez, according to the Washington Post and other media reports. The lobbying group has become a focus of attention in some Democratic primary contests this year as the Israel-Hamas War has deepened intra-party tensions. Wahab and Hernandez will again face each other in November. The winner of that election will hold the congressional seat for a full two-year term.