US midterms: Four Nigerian Americans record victories in elective positions

Four politicians of Nigerian descent have secured electoral victories in the November 3 midterm elections in the United States, winning positions in different levels of government.

The successful candidates are Will Jawando, Junior Ezeonu, Oye Owolewa and Carol Kazeem, who contested under the Democratic Party across Maryland, Texas, Washington, DC, and Pennsylvania.

However, the race involving another Nigerian-born politician, Segun Adeyina, was yet to be decided as electoral authorities continued counting votes.

In Maryland, Jawando emerged victorious in the contest for Montgomery County executive, defeating Republican Esther Wells.

Figures released by NBC Washington on Wednesday put Jawando’s votes at 237,383, representing 78.15 per cent of the total recorded at the time. Wells had 66,383 votes, equivalent to 21.85 per cent, with 72 per cent of the expected ballots counted.

Jawando previously represented a district on the Montgomery County Council. He has Nigerian roots through his father, while his mother is American.

Another winner, 27-year-old Junior Ezeonu, secured a place in the Texas House of Representatives, representing District 101.

His victory followed his emergence as the Democratic Party’s candidate after defeating incumbent Chris Turner in the party’s primary election. He subsequently faced no Republican challenger in the November poll.

Born in Onitsha, Anambra State, Ezeonu relocated to Texas with his family when he was two, according to information on his campaign website.

His political career includes an election to the Grand Prairie City Council in 2021. He later became the youngest person to occupy the position of mayor pro tempore in the city.

In Washington, DC, Oye Owolewa also won another term as an at-large member of the District of Columbia Council.

The 51st reported that Owolewa obtained 69 per cent of the votes, while independent candidate Elissa Silverman received 21 per cent.

A pharmacist by profession, Owolewa comes from a Nigerian family with roots in Kwara and Osun states. Before his latest electoral victory, he served as the District’s shadow representative, a role through which he campaigned for statehood without voting privileges in the US Congress.

Pennsylvania also recorded a victory for a Nigerian American, as Carol Kazeem successfully defended her seat in the state’s House of Representatives.

Kazeem, who represents District 159, contested against Republican Michael Bannon. MultiState Elections listed her as the winner of the contest.

Her latest victory adds to her electoral record after she was among eight Nigerian Americans elected to legislative positions during the 2022 US midterm elections.

Meanwhile, Adeyina was seeking to retain his position in Georgia’s House of Representatives, where he represents District 110.

The Democratic incumbent faced Republican Charles Lollar in the contest for District 110. An update from the Atlanta Journal-Constitution’s election tracker showed Adeyina with 1,353 votes, compared with Lollar’s 689.

However, the figures were based on just eight per cent of the estimated ballots, meaning the outcome was still uncertain at the time.

Adeyina entered the Georgia legislature in 2022. Beyond his legislative responsibilities, his official profile identifies him as the executive director of the Nigerian American Public Advisory Committee, which works on voter education and registration within immigrant communities.

The US holds midterm elections every two years, halfway into a president’s four-year administration. The exercise determines the membership of Congress, with all 435 seats in the House of Representatives and 35 of the Senate’s 100 seats contested in the 2026 election cycle.

Several governorships, state legislative seats and local government positions are also decided during the elections.

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