Wahab suspends campaign for Swalwell’s East Bay seat
The Hayward City Council will be home for now for Aisha Wahab, who has suspended her campaign for Dublin Democratic Rep. Eric Swalwell’s seat after he dropped out of the presidential race and fired up his reelection effort.
In an email to her backers, the councilwoman thanked them for their support and promised to “continue to be a vigilant voice for every member of my community.”
She never mentioned Swalwell in her missive but made it clear that she’s not necessarily a fan.
“When I announced, I saw an immediate outpouring of support from this community who are frustrated and upset by the lack of actions from those in power, but are silenced by fear,” Wahab wrote. “To those of you in my community who feel unheard and underserved, I hear you and will continue to proactively tackle our issues, together.”
Wahab, who was elected to
the council in November, jumped into the congressional race when Swalwell announced he was running for president and said he wouldn’t seek reelection .
“If you’re seeking such a big job that would affect so many people, I think you have to assure the people you’re asking to vote for you that you’re not hedging. And that you don’t have a lifeboat waiting for you,” Swalwell said in February on The Chronicle’s “It’s All Political” podcast.
But Swalwell’s presidential bid never gained much traction. When it became obvious that he wasn’t going to qualify for this week’s Democratic presidential debates, he dropped out of the race and said he’d run for reelection to his safe, noRepublicansneedapply congressional seat.
Challenging Swalwell, a fellow Democrat, was never really an option for Wahab. As a rookie politician, she had nowhere near the local and national name identification Swalwell had as a former Dublin councilman, threeterm congressman and shorttime presidential candidate. ey.Then there’s the mon
In the first six months of 2019, Swalwell collected $1.1 million for his congressional campaign and had $461,592 in the bank on June 30. Wahab took in $56,141 and had $40,504 cash on hand.
Ending her congressional effort was inevitable, but Wahab didn’t go away quietly.
“This is not the end in my fight for a progressive future for all Americans,” she said.