On November 4, the mid-term elections were held in the United States as Americans went to the polls to elect members of Congress, the Senate, as well as legislators for state and county legislative assemblies.
The Republican Party, which is the ruling party at the federal level, performed abysmally at the polls, losing control of both houses as voters’ dissatisfaction with the state of the economy and high cost of living helped swing the mid-term election in favour of the Democrats.
The scale of republican monumental losses was underscored by Democrats’ victories in traditionally and historically red states like Texas, where they have not won in decades.
Six Nigerian-American Democrats emerged victorious in Tuesday’s midterm elections, securing key positions across local government and state legislature.
Election data reveals the sheer scale of Republican defeat, with analysts describing the rout as a historic rebuke.
In the House of Representatives, where all 435 seats were contested, Democrats flipped numerous Republican strongholds, with projections showing them capturing up to 259 seats.
In the Senate, Democrats flipped seven key Republican-held seats across several states, ending Republican dominance in Washington and ensuring a divided government for the final two years of Trump’s presidency.
The six Nigerian Americans who won their elections are Will Jawando, Junior Ezeonu, Oye Owolewa, Carol Kazeem, Segun Adeyina, and Gabe Okoye
WILL JAWANDO
Jawando was elected Montgomery County executive in Maryland. He won the race by a landslide after securing 237,383 votes, representing a massive 78.15 per cent, to defeat Republican Esther Wells. Wells had 66,383 votes.
The 43-year-old at-large council member, who recently recovered from a heart attack in early September, defeated his colleagues Andrew Friedson and Evan Glass in a highly competitive June primary.
Running on a progressive campaign to boost education funding and affordable housing, Jawando sealed his ultimate victory on Tuesday. He was born in Montgomery County to Olayinka Jawando, a Nigerian immigrant, and an American mother.
JUNIOR EZEONU
The 27-year-old Ezeonu won the race for the Texas House of Representatives seat for District 101. He clinched the Democratic ticket after defeating 54-year-old incumbent Chris Turner in the party’s primary.
Ezeonu ultimately ran unopposed on the November general election ballot after no Republican opponent entered the race.
Born in Onitsha, Anambra State, he relocated to Texas at age two. His political rise began when he was elected to the Grand Prairie City Council in 2021 at age 22, later becoming the city’s youngest mayor pro tempore.
At age 27, he will be the youngest member of the Texas Legislature.
OYE OWOLEWA
Owolewa garnered 69 pe cent of the vote to win an at-large seat on the District of Columbia Council in Washington, D.C., defeating independent candidate Elissa Silverman, who secured 21 per cent.
Owolewa, a pharmacist born to Nigerian immigrants from Kwara and Osun states, previously served as
the District’s shadow representative in January 2021, advocating for statehood. Despite facing childhood bullying over his name, Owolewa has proudly hinged his political identity on his rich Nigerian roots.
CAROL KAZEEM
Contesting on the Democratic platform, Kazeem defeated Republican candidate Michael Bannon to retain her seat in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives, representing District 159.
Born in Pennsylvania, Kazeem first entered the legislature by winning during the midterm elections in 2022, when she was among eight Nigerian-Americans elected to various offices nationwide.
SEGUN ADEYINA
Adeyina won re-election to the Georgia House of Representatives for District 110 with a convincing victory, roundly defeating his Republican opponent, Charles Lollar.
Adeyina secured 21,696 votes, representing 76 per cent of the total vote, while Lollar polled only 6,991 votes.
First elected to the Georgia House in 2022, Adeyinka also serves as the executive director of the Nigerian American Public Advisory Committee, focusing on voter education among immigrant communities.
GABE OKOYE
Gabe Okoye hails from Enugwu-Agidi in Anambra State. He secured victory in Georgia’s House District 102 unopposed.
Relocating to the US in 1981, Okoye began his American journey working as a security guard. Through grit and resilience, he enrolled in college, became a licensed civil engineer, and eventually founded a company called Essex Geoscientist. Married with four children, the state representative has lived in Atlanta since 1992.
Recall that Adeyina, Okoye, Kazeem, and Owolewa were four of the eight Nigerian-Americans whom former President Muhammadu Buhari congratulated on their election victories during the midterm elections four years ago, in November 2022, although Owolewa won for a different office this time.
In April 2023, Adeyina welcomed a delegation of Nigerians led by Rt. Hon. Adeyemi Ikuforiji, a former Speaker of the Lagos State House of Assembly, to witness the closing of the Georgia Assembly Session in Atlanta. The Georgia lawmaker lauded the former Lagos Speaker, stating that Nigerians in elected offices in the United States were following in his footsteps.
