NBC News called the election on Tuesday night.<\/p>\n
\t \u201cThey told me this wasn\u2019t possible. That\u2019s what they said,\u201d Rabb said during a victory speech. \u201cI don\u2019t know who they are, but I know who we are. I\u2019m looking at we the people. And I\u2019m not talking about we the people 250 years ago. That was a much smaller we. I\u2019m talking about the aggressive fabulosity of this we.\u201d<\/p>\n Rabb\u2019s top two opponents were Sharif Street, a state senator who garnered support from J Street and figures in the political establishment, including Philadelphia\u2019s mayor and Sen. Cory Booker of New Jersey; and Ala Stanford, a pediatric surgeon who has faced scrutiny for being boosted by a group that\u2019s alleged to be a shell organization for AIPAC.<\/p>\n With about 84 percent of expected votes in, Rabb held a strong lead with 44% of the vote; Street received 29.5% of counted votes, and Stanford was in third with 24.1%.<\/p>\n Rabb will be the Democratic nominee for a November general election that he is almost assured to win in the country\u2019s \u201cbluest House district.\u201d<\/p>\n At a time when Democratic voters are overwhelmingly sympathizing with Palestinians over Israelis, the turnout for Rabb, who has centered pro-Palestinian advocacy in his bid for Congress, may very well have signaled how those sentiments translate to electoral results.<\/p>\n Before Rabb, efforts to elect a new \u201cSquad\u201d member had fallen short this cycle, though those candidates \u2014 like Nida Allam in North Carolina \u2014 were up against incumbents, or, as in the case of Kat Abughazaleh in Illinois, lacked Rabb\u2019s experience in elected office.<\/p>\n \t Rabb\u2019s campaign picked up momentum in recent weeks. He was endorsed by a number of left-wing House representatives including Ocasio-Cortez, Ilhan Omar, Rashida Tlaib, Ro Khanna, and Summer Lee, who is also from Pennsylvania. He also rallied alongside the progressive Piker<\/a>, a staunch critic of Israel who has been accused of antisemitism, in Philadelphia.<\/p>\n If elected in November, Rabb\u2019s platform would make him one of the harshest critics of Israel in Congress. He supports a complete embargo on arms sales to Israel. He posted on X last week that \u201cthe Nakba never ended,\u201d and said he would co-sponsor a resolution with Omar and Tlaib to \u201crecognize the Nakba and reaffirm Palestinian refugees\u2019 right to return.\u201d<\/p>\n Maryland Rep. Jamie Raskin, who is Jewish and has sponsored the Block the Bombs to Israel Act, endorsed Rabb. He was also endorsed by the anti-Zionist group Jewish Voice for Peace, and a slew of left-wing groups including Democratic Socialists of America and the Working Families Party, as well as groups that explicitly work to counter AIPAC such as Track AIPAC and PAL PAC.<\/p>\n \u201cWe will be with Congressman Rabb every step of the way in the fight to abolish ICE, free Palestine and win Medicare for All,\u201d the DSA wrote on X Tuesday night.<\/p>\n The super PAC American Priorities, which seeks to be a counterweight to AIPAC\u2019s super PAC, United Democracy Project, spent more than $400,000 boosting Rabb, according to FEC filings.<\/p>\n Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, who is Jewish and supports a continued US-Israel relationship, was reportedly rumored to be working behind the scenes to quietly derail Rabb\u2019s campaign. Shapiro has not publicly weighed in on the race and did not respond to a request for comment.<\/p>\n \t Stanford\u2019s reported support from AIPAC thrust her into the spotlight on Israel. During a tense moment at a candidates\u2019 forum last month, Stanford was pressed by an audience member on whether she believed Israel was committing a genocide.<\/p>\n She refused to use the term to describe Israel\u2019s military actions, and said, \u201cFor Israelis who have been accused of committing it, it\u2019s hurtful for them.\u201d<\/p>\n Stanford had been endorsed by the district\u2019s representative, Evans, who is retiring at the end of this term, and a handful of other US House representatives including Madeleine Dean and Chrissy Houlahan from Pennsylvania. Hawaii\u2019s Jewish governor, Josh Green, also endorsed Stanford.<\/p>\n Meanwhile, Street had the chance to become Pennsylvania\u2019s first Muslim member of Congress. He has been critical of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, saying he should be prosecuted for war crimes, but is far more moderate on Israel than Rabb and made the subject less central to his campaign messaging. Like Stanford, he has not referred to Israel\u2019s military actions as a \u201cgenocide\u201d and advocates for a two-state solution, as well as continued US aid to Israel.<\/p>\n \t Booker traveled to Philadelphia on Monday to stump for Street.<\/p>\n Street is the son of former Philadelphia mayor John Street and had the support of a number of state legislators and City Council members, as well as the Philadelphia City Democratic Committee. Rue Landau, the only Jewish member of the City Council and its first openly LGBTQ member, endorsed Street.<\/p>\n Street was listed as \u201cprimary approved\u201d on the website of liberal pro-Israel advocacy group J Street, which has recently drifted to a position that advocates for continued weapons sales, but a phasing out of military subsidies, to Israel.<\/p>\n
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\n\t\tPennsylvania Sen. Sharif Street speaks during a press conference in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, June 30, 2025. (Aimee Dilger\/AP)<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/AP25121802523319-e1753150223942-640x400.jpg\")
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\n\t\tUS Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, a New York Democrat, speaks at the NYCLU\u2019s May Day rally for worker\u2019s and immigrants rights at Foley Square, May 1, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo\/Angelina Katsanis)<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/AP24212481594227-640x400.jpg\")
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\n\t\tDr. Ala Stanford speaks during a campaign event for then-Democratic presidential candidate Vice President Kamala Harris in Ambler, Pennsylvania, July 29, 2024. (Matt Rourke\/AP)<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/AP26098037048658-e1778921881801-640x400.jpg\")
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\n\t\tFar-left streamer Hasan Piker speaks at a campaign rally for Abdul El-Sayed, a candidate in the Democratic primary for US Senate in Michigan, at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor on Tuesday, April 7, 2026. (AP Photo\/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)<\/p>\n
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