RESOLVING THE LEDGER
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State Sen. Aisha Wahab, D-Hayward, was narrowly leading in the early results released from Tuesday’s special election to fill the rest of the congressional term in the East Bay seat formerly represented by Eric Swalwell.
Wahab had 33,399 votes, or 51%, compared to 32,043 and 49% for Melissa Hernandez, a BART board director and former Dublin mayor, according to the unofficial results released from the initial vote-by-mail ballots counted by the Alameda County Registrar of Voters.
The two were in a runoff to fill the rest of Swalwell’s term that ends in January for California’s 14th Congressional District after neither garnered a majority in a June 16 special election where Wahab received 43% of the vote and Hernandez 17%.
Swalwell resigned from his congressional seat in April amid accusations of sexual assault. He has denied all allegations against him.
The county Registrar of Voters said more results from the election will be released on Friday, then again Aug. 26 and Aug. 28.
In a race that’s seen some heated accusations on both sides, Wahab says she’s confident her political history and record with the voters gives her an edge.
“I am the state senator. I have capped HOA fines at $100, capped insulin at $35 for a 30-day supply. I believe in Medicare for all, I believe in social safety nets and really pushing back on the cuts to our most vulnerable communities. And I believe in human rights for all,” Wahab said.
Hernandez says she’s confident voters will see her as the candidate focused on the right issues because she’s taken the time to connect.
“When I go knocking on those doors, they’re worried about groceries being too high, the gas prices being too high and also the fact that we want to be able to have our next generation, our children, their children, stay in the place they grew up in if they choose to,” Hernandez said.
Political Analyst Larry Gerston says the race is also getting a lot of attention because voters are being asked who should hold the seat for a few months and then they’ll be asked to come back in November and decide whether that person should get a full two-year term.
Gerston says the electorate in that November race could end up being much different from this one.
“You have the activists and many other moderates coming out in November. Whoever gets the moderates is likely to prevail given what we see now, that may help Hernandez more than more than Wahab,” Gerston said.
Along with Tuesday’s election to decide who fills the seat for the final months of Swalwell’s term, Wahab and Hernandez finished as the top two candidates in the June 2 primary and will face off again in November in a separate runoff for the next congressional two-year term to represent District 14, which includes the cities of Hayward, Pleasanton, Livermore, Union City, Castro Valley, and parts of Dublin and Fremont.
Decision 2026
Aug 18
California Congressional District 14 special election results
Decision 2026
Aug 17
California special election to fill Swalwell's Congressional District 14 seat
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