Voters in California’s 14th Congressional District are casting ballots today in a special runoff election to fill the seat vacated by Eric Swalwell after he resigned in April amid sexual assault allegations. State Senator Aisha Wahab and BART Board President Melissa Hernandez are the two finalists in the race, advancing from a June primary under California’s top-two primary system that allows the top two vote-getters to compete regardless of party affiliation.
Swalwell, who had held the East Bay seat for seven terms, resigned on April 13, 2026, after the San Francisco Chronicle and CNN reported allegations of sexual misconduct. He also dropped out of the 2026 California gubernatorial race, where he had previously been considered a frontrunner.
The special primary on June 16 drew a crowded field, with Wahab finishing first with 38 to 42.8 percent of the vote and Hernandez placing second with 17 to 26.6 percent. No candidate reached a majority, triggering today’s runoff between the two Democrats. Wahab has maintained her advantage in polling and prediction markets, where she is trading at 88 percent to win, and has the endorsement of the California Democratic Party.
Wahab, a state senator representing District 10, is the daughter of Afghan immigrants and was the first Afghan American elected to public office in the United States when she joined the Hayward City Council in 2018. Hernandez, a former Dublin mayor, was elected to the BART Board of Directors in 2024 and is currently serving as the board’s president. She is the daughter of migrant farmworkers and became the first Latina mayor of Dublin.
The race has drawn significant outside spending, particularly from pro-Israel groups. Super PACs linked to AIPAC poured nearly $2.5 million into the race in recent weeks to boost Hernandez and oppose Wahab, who has positioned herself as more progressive on Middle East policy. The Washington Post reported that the organization’s super PAC spent the bulk of its resources on ads targeting Wahab and supporting Hernandez in the final stretch of the campaign.
California’s top-two primary system, adopted in 2010 through Proposition 14, requires all candidates for voter-nominated offices to appear on the same ballot regardless of party. The system was designed to encourage moderation and reduce partisan polarization, though it has occasionally resulted in general elections between two candidates from the same party, as in this case. The winner of today’s runoff will serve out the remainder of Swalwell’s term through the end of 2026, with a separate general election scheduled for November to determine who serves the full two-year term beginning in 2027.
Sources
- California Secretary of State — election dates, top-two primary system details
- Ballotpedia — candidate information, primary results (38-42.8% for Wahab, 17-26.6% for Hernandez)
- PBS NewsHour — Swalwell’s resignation and allegations, runoff details
- The New York Times — AIPAC spending and candidate positioning
- The Washington Post — AIPAC super PAC spending details ($2.5 million)
- The Guardian — AIPAC spending and Wahab as frontrunner
- NBC Bay Area / Associated Press — primary results and candidate backgrounds
