1. Rebecca Bennett, New Jersey
When the former healthcare executive Rebecca Bennett secured the Democratic nomination for New Jersey’s seventh congressional district, she called herself a “political outsider” and “a 2010 Honda Accord-driving, navy-veteran mom”.
She could soon be a member of Congress, poised to flip a seat held by a Republican who has been absent on the job for months. The Republican, Tom Kean Jr, represents the suburban swing district that Trump carried narrowly in 2024 and ran unopposed in the primary, seeking a third term. But he has been mysteriously missing in Congress since early March, with a medical condition that he has not publicly disclosed.
Between Kean’s absence and Bennett’s military background, Democrats believe they have a strong chance at the seat, which is one of the country’s most competitive.
In her remarks after her win, Bennett said: “We cannot just be anti-Trump and anti-hate. We have to be for something. We have to solve the problems that we are all facing in our everyday lives.”
2. Adam Hamawy, New Jersey
Hamawy, a 56-year-old plastic surgeon and army veteran, secured the Democratic nomination in New Jersey’s 12th congressional district after a rise from political obscurity to beat nearly a dozen other Democrats.
After returning from a medical mission in Gaza in 2024, he described what he saw to elected officials in Washington, including the representative Bonnie Watson Coleman. When she later announced her retirement, the doctor decided to run in her place.
Hamawy’s victory in the safely blue seat means he is likely to become the first Muslim lawmaker to represent the state nationally. Progressive heavy-hitters such as Bernie Sanders, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Ilhan Omar endorsed Hamawy, who has called for Medicare for All, the abolition of ICE and an arms embargo and sanctions for Israel.
“Healthcare not bombs. Abolish ICE. Unrig the economy,” he wrote on social media after his win.
3. Josh Turek, Iowa
State legislator Josh Turek’s personal story and “prairie populist” messaging won over Iowa primary voters, who chose him as the Democratic nominee for US Senate over Zach Wahls, who was running on a more anti-establishment message.
“I was born an underdog,” Turek said in a video posted after his victory, detailing how he was born with spina bifida from his father’s exposure to Agent Orange in Vietnam and uses a wheelchair. He said that as a child he wore “Goodwill hand-me-downs” and had the “wrong color lunch ticket”, a reference to free and reduced lunch for low-income students.
Turek serves in a Trump-friendly district, but his experience as a Paralympic gold medalist in wheelchair basketball and self-description as “one of the first permanently disabled members of the Iowa house” could be among the many factors giving him broad appeal. The Senate seat is open after the incumbent, Joni Ernst, decided not to run again. Ashley Hinson, an Iowa congresswoman and former broadcaster, secured the Republican nomination on Tuesday.
In a statement after his win, Turek said: “I will be a real fighter for Iowans, the middle class and our working families. So from now until November, I welcome all Iowans – Democrats, Republicans, and Independents alike – to join our team.”
4. Rob Sand, Iowa
Rob Sand is the last Democrat in a statewide office in Iowa. The state auditor, with a penchant for hunting, solidified the Democratic nomination for governor, gunning for an open seat after Kim Reynolds announced she would retire.
He often criticizes the two-party system and accuses politicians of being out of touch.
“What I’m going to emphasize is that our democracy is run by two private clubs who have a lot of people in them who are happier to have you hate your uncle if they can ring another $10 donation out of you,” he told MS Now in a recent interview. “They’re more focused on that than solving the problems that we face.”
After Zach Lahn, who has faced criticism for having a second home in Kansas, beat out the Trump-endorsed candidate, Randy Feenstra, for the Republican side of the ticket, Sand told Republican voters they were welcome in his campaign.
5. Scott Wiener, California
The California state senator has advanced to the November runoff in the San Francisco congressional district long held by Nancy Pelosi, the former US House speaker who is retiring at the end of her term.
Wiener, viewed as a relatively moderate Democrat in the deep-blue district, is a prolific legislator well-known for championing policies that make it easier to build multifamily housing.
It was not immediately clear who Wiener would face in November.
“I’ve spent my life sticking my neck out for San Francisco,” Wiener said in a campaign ad, featuring a giraffe – a reference to the lawmaker’s height. “Building housing to bring down costs, protecting our healthcare and making sure ICE can’t hide behind masks. I’ve got a long neck, and an even longer track record of serving this community.”
