Aber Kawas

Kawas describes herself as the daughter of Palestinian refugees, born and raised in a working-class family in New York City, and her campaign website says her father was detained by ICE and deported from the U.S. when she was young.[2][7] According to the website, she has more than 15 years of community organizing experience, including the Fight for $15 minimum-wage campaign, efforts on police surveillance and harassment, and organizing for immigration reform.[2] She says she helped develop and launch the "Not On Our Dime" campaign alongside then-Assemblymember Zohran Mamdani, which targets New York-based nonprofits that fund Israeli settler entities; in a Democracy Now interview she described working with Mamdani on a bill of that name.[2][7]

Kawas is a member of the New York City chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America and was endorsed in the primary by New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani.[1] On June 23, 2026, she won the Democratic primary for the open seat of retiring Senator Michael Gianaris, defeating Assemblymember Steven Raga with about 60% of the vote in unofficial results.[1] According to her campaign website, she campaigned on affordable housing, universal healthcare, immigration reform and public transit.[2] Democracy Now reported before the election that she would be the first Palestinian American and the first Muslim woman in the New York State Legislature if elected.[7] Kawas won the November 3, 2026 general election with 74.3% of the vote to Han Khon To's 25.4%, according to unofficial results reported by Ballotpedia and Wikipedia.[3][4]