After winning in the primary elections in August and tweeting “One step closer to the statehouse,” Munira Abdullahi was bound to be victorious in the general elections, as there was no opponent on the Republican ticket. But that final step occurred on election night to make it official.
“We made it guys,” Abdullahi tweeted. “Thank you to all who worked tirelessly for this campaign and put everything on the line. We made history indeed!”
Abdullahi is now the first ever Somali-American Ohio legislator who will be serving in the House of Representatives. She represents District 9 in northeastern Columbus, a highly-populated Somali district.
Her district favors Democrats so heavily that no one bothered to oppose her in the Republican party. And back in August in the primary elections, Abdullahi decimated her opponent, Paul Filipelli, by wide 37% gap. She received 68.5% of the votes while Filipelli received 31.5%.
It was bound to happen in Ohio, as it has the second largest population of Somalis in the country, after Minnesota. And Minnesota has seen its fair share of Somali-American legislators, such Ilhan Omar, Hodan Hassan, and Omar Fateh, to name a few. And now, Samakab Hussein is the first Somali-American elected official from St Paul, Minnesota. He is representing District 65.
On the other hand, Somali-Americans have seen only defeats in Ohio up until this year. Mohamud Jama, an electrical engineer, ran for the House for District 25 in 2020 and lost. Ismail Mohamed ran for the House for District 25 in 2018 and lost.
Abdullahi, 26, was born in a refugee camp in Kenya and immigrated to Columbus when she was five years old. In 2019, she graduated from Ohio State University with a degree in political science and international relations.
After graduating, Abdullahi worked for a non-profit organization that promoted youth development and leadership. She also served as a program manager for the Muslim American Society.
“I truly believe the legislature needs to reflect the community that it serves,” Abdullahi said. “I think having someone who has been part of the community — who understands the struggles, understands the people in a personal capacity — will make a huge difference in having their concerns heard.”
Abdullahi places a strong emphasis on infrastructure, healthcare, and education. She ran on a progressive platform that included expanding medicaid, using more green energy, and increasing investment in affordable housing.
