Aisha Wahab Far Ahead in Special Election for Swalwell’s Former Seat

A total of 11 candidates threw their hats in the ring for the race, but only the top two finishers, regardless of party, will move on to a special general election to determine who earns the seat scheduled for Aug. 18.

If one candidate secures more than 50% of the votes in the primary, however, they will win the seat outright.

Wahab said given the number of candidates in the race, she feels it’s unlikely she’ll be able to earn more than 50% of the votes to win the race outright, but was encouraged by the large share of voters who supported her in a crowded field.

“I try really hard to pass policies that really help them. From capping HOA fees, to increasing the renter’s tax credit, to putting money for down payment assistance for first-time home buyers, capping insulin, you name it, we try to do it. And these are common-sense policies,” Wahab said.

“Even in the wealthy Bay Area, people are struggling. I’ve lived that struggle, I know that struggle and I think that that is largely what really motivates me to do the work I do every single day, and it translates to the voters,” she said.

Gov. Gavin Newsom called the special election after Swalwell resigned from Congress after multiple women leveled sexual assault and misconduct allegations against him.

The unexpected race has thrown an extra wrinkle into an already hotly contested congressional election.

Swalwell had previously declared he would not seek reelection to Congress so he could run for governor, which prompted nine candidates to run for the seat in the standard June 2 primary.

In that race, Wahab was the frontrunner, earning more than 38% of the votes counted thus far, which is more than double the second-place finisher, Hernandez, who holds a little more than 17% of the vote.

Wahab and Hernandez, both Democrats, will face off in the November general election to determine who wins the seat for the next four-year term.

The special primary and general election process will determine who will hold the seat for the remainder of Swalwell’s term, which ends in January. Democrats are hoping to fill the seat quickly, as Republicans control the House of Representatives by just a handful of votes.

Also on the ballot with Wahab, Hernandez and Singh are three other Democrats: Alisha Cordes, a business administrator; administrative law judge Sheriene Ridenour; and businessman Jot Thiara.

Four Republicans were running in the race: Wendy Huang, a real estate investor; florist Dena Maldonado; Tom Wong, a businessman; and Jack Wu, an educator. Victor Zevallos, a financial business strategist, was running as an independent.

The seat represents about 740,000 people across Castro Valley, Hayward, Livermore, Pleasanton and Union City, and parts of Dublin, Fremont and San Leandro.

About 429,000 registered voters live in the district, with about half of them registered Democrats. Nearly 18% are Republicans, and about 26% do not have a party preference.

Polls were open until 8 p.m. Tuesday, as in a standard election, though early voting had been available since ballots were mailed to voters in mid-May.