Voters in a swath of California's Bay Area head to the polls Tuesday to determine which Democrat will replace former Representative Eric Swalwell in the state's 14th Congressional District. The race between State Senator Aisha Wahab and local transit official Melissa Hernandez has become increasingly expensive and combative.
Wahab and Hernandez advanced to Tuesday's special election after garnering roughly 38 and 17 percent support, respectively, in a nonpartisan primary held in June. Under California's unique 'jungle primary' system, the top two vote-getters advance if neither receives more than 50 percent. Swalwell, who served over a decade in Congress before running for governor, resigned in April amid multiple sexual assault allegations he denies.
Polls are open from 7am to 8pm local time. Once considered the inevitable successor, Wahab has faced a flood of outside money. Super PACs, including some affiliated with the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC), have spent millions on ads to sink Wahab's candidacy and boost Hernandez. The United Democracy Project, an AIPAC-affiliated group, spent $1.2 million in August against Wahab, while another group spent $1.7 million.
Collectively, outside groups have spent about $4.1 million since mid-July, with $3.7 million benefiting Hernandez and less than $400,000 benefiting Wahab. Wahab, an Afghan American and the first Muslim woman elected to California's state Senate, has criticized Israel's genocidal war in Gaza and pushed legislation condemning alleged human rights abuses against Palestinians. Hernandez's campaign is attacking Wahab's legislative record on criminal penalties.
Wahab last week said she plans to file a complaint with the Federal Election Commission (FEC) over 'unprecedented' election interference on social media by outside groups like AIPAC. 'What we are seeing is a surge of suspicious accounts, bot-like activity, and very much coordinated to say the same vile, misleading narratives,' Wahab said at a press conference. Semafor reported that a Hernandez supporter filed a separate FEC complaint against Wahab, alleging an 'illegal and unreported in-kind contribution' from the local Democratic Party. Wahab dismissed it as 'deliberately misrepresenting' party support.
The district's boundaries were redrawn as part of a new congressional map approved by voters in a 2025 ballot measure. The winner of the special election will serve under current boundaries for the remainder of the year. AIPAC's spending signals the group intends to spend big ahead of November's pivotal midterms, despite a mixed record in this year's primaries.
The winner will serve out Swalwell's term, ending in January. Wahab and Hernandez will face off again in November for the full two-year term.
Source: www.aljazeera.com