Aipac-linked Super Pacs have spent more than $5m in recent weeks in the race for Eric Swalwell’s former seat, backing Melissa Hernandez and targeting Aisha Wahab. Wahab, a state senator, said the ads have brought daily calls and emails from people “disgusted by the ads,” as the candidates head toward a runoff election later this month.
The spending includes $1.2m from United Democracy Project and $2.1m from Bold America Pac, while Track Aipac said the lobby has spent more than $4.4m to support Hernandez. Wahab said, “You have to ask yourself, why? Aipac is clearly not interested in having diverse voices at the table, they are not interested in supporting the Jewish community and a peaceful dialogue,” and added, “They want a puppet they can control.”
Aisha Wahab in California
Wahab was widely considered the frontrunner in the special election for the district covering a swathe of the East Bay, and the California Democratic party has endorsed her. In the June primary and special election to complete the remainder of Swalwell’s term, she outpaced Hernandez by more than 20 points.
Eric Swalwell had been in office for more than a decade when he resigned earlier this year after multiple allegations of sexual assault. The race now centers on whether the independent spending can narrow Wahab’s advantage before the runoff election and the rematch in November.
Melissa Hernandez and Ajay Mohan
Hernandez is president of the board of directors for Bay Area Rapid Transit, and her campaign manager, Ajay Mohan, said, “Melissa does not control independent expenditures. No candidate does.” Wahab described the spending as election interference, while Hernandez benefits from the attack ads and outside spending now running through the final stretch of the race.
Wahab has also been endorsed by Rob Bonta and Yesenia Sanchez, and she has pointed to her support for legislation to make human trafficking a serious felony and for a bill of rights for sexual assault survivors. The next turn in the race is the runoff election later this month, where the outside money will test whether Wahab’s lead can hold before the November contest.
