The growing political participation of Pakistani Americans has produced a new generation of elected officials and candidates across the United States. From state legislatures in Texas and Connecticut to congressional races in Virginia and California, Pakistani Americans have steadily increased their presence in American public life.
An examination of publicly reported election results since 2020 shows that Dr. Assad Mujtaba’s 2024 Passaic County, New Jersey, countywide race places him among the highest-vote-getting Pakistani American candidates in the United States over the past five years. Publicly available reports indicate that Dr. Mujtaba received approximately 85,000–86,000 votes in his countywide election campaign.
While California physician and Democratic candidate Dr. Asif Mahmood remains the clear leader in raw vote totals, thanks to his statewide California campaigns that reached hundreds of thousands of voters, very few Pakistani American candidates in recent years have approached the vote totals achieved by Dr. Assad Mujtaba in a local or countywide race. Congressional candidates such as Qasim Rashid in Virginia and Aaron Bashir in Pennsylvania also posted significant numbers, but Dr. Mujtaba’s performance stands out as one of the strongest recent showings by a Pakistani American Republican candidate.
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Why Dr. Assad Mujtaba’s Result Matters
Raw vote totals are often influenced by the size of the electorate. California statewide races naturally generate far more votes than county or municipal contests. For that reason, raw totals alone do not tell the entire story.
When evaluated in the context of local and county government races, Dr. Assad Mujtaba’s approximately 86,000 votes rank among the strongest performances by a Pakistani American candidate in recent years and, arguably, among the strongest by a Pakistani American Republican candidate at the county level.
His campaign also reflects an emerging trend in American politics: Pakistani Americans are increasingly participating in both major political parties and competing successfully in mainstream elections, rather than confining themselves to ethnic or community-based politics.
As Pakistani American political engagement continues to grow, candidates including Asif Mahmood, Qasim Rashid, Salman Bhojani, Suleman Lalani, Saud Anwar, and Assad Mujtaba demonstrate that the community is becoming a visible and increasingly influential force in the American democratic process.
Prof. Dr. Gholam Mujtaba is a Pakistani American Republican leader and Chairman of the Pakistan Policy Institute USA (PPI-USA). He specializes in geopolitics, public policy, leadership studies, and U.S.–Muslim world relations.
