Aber Kawas makes history as first Palestinian American, Muslim woman in New York Senate

Aber Kawas, a Palestinian American democratic socialist, is seeking to become the first Palestinian American and first Muslim woman in the New York State Legislature, after winning the Democratic primary for State Senate District 12 in Queens with about 74% of the vote. She recived roughly 47,300 votes to Republican-line candidate Han-Khon To's roughly 16,200.
Kawas defeated Assembly member Steven Raga in the open-seat race in the June 23 primary. The seat opened when Deputy Majority Leader Michael Gianaris announced he would not seek reelection.

"We made history," Kawas wrote in a short post on X.

Who is Aber Kawas?

Kawas, born and raised in Brooklyn, New York, to Palestinian parents, ran on a platform of democratic socialism and affordability. She also called for defunding Israel's war in Gaza and won the endorsement of New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani, Senator Bernie Sanders, and Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib. She is the child of Palestinian refugees who immigrated to the United States from Jordan.

“Fund dignity, fight destruction” was the slogan of her campaign. Fund dignity signifies her position on healthcare for all, efficient public transportation and affordable housing, fight destruction refers to opposing climate change, protecting immigrants and defunding war.

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Her candidacy has drawn criticism from conservative outlets, which have highlighted remarks she made about 9/11 on a 2017 podcast. Supporters, including the Democratic Socialists of America, describe her as a voice for working-class and marginalised communities.

She was part of a coalition of activists looking to work at a local level of government to disrupt funding that supports the Israeli state and its military occupation of Palestine. Zohran Mamdani, then an assembly member, helped to draft it.

This is refreshing, as according to the data aggregator AIPAC tracker, 521 out of 533 sitting members of the US Congress had taken funding from the Israel lobby, which is roughly 95%. In fact in the 2026 Mideterms, 491 out of 982 general-election candidates had pro-Israel PAC financial involvement behind or against their campaigns. This means 50% of the of all major congressional candidates on the ballot across 475 federal races had links to Israel lobby. This link is bipartisan, with major name including Republican Michigan nominee Mike Rogers and Democratic North Carolina Senator Roy Cooper.
Kawas told Democracy Now she believes she would be the first Palestinian American in the state Senate and in the entire state Legislature. Her claim covers New York only. Other Palestinian Americans have held elected office elsewhere in the country.