Adam Hamawy, a surgeon who became a hero of the pro-Palestine movement after treating patients in Gaza, is heading to Congress after winning a Democratic primary in southern New Jersey on Tuesday.

Hamawy won a crowded primary for New Jersey’s solidly blue 12th District, and is all but certain to be elected to Congress in November. Hamawy, who had the endorsement of Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and basically every other leading progressive elected official and group, benefited from a divided field of more moderate candidates and $2 million in spending from American Priorities, a super PAC that backs pro-Palestinian candidates.

He was winning roughly 28% of the vote in the 13-person race as of 11:30 p.m. on Tuesday night. The seat is open because of the retirement of progressive Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman.

“In every corner of this district, we built a movement of people who were fed up,” Hamawy said in a speech celebrating his victory. “Fed up with a government that serves the billionaires and corporations, but never us. Fed up with an economy where families work hard and still can’t make ends meet. Fed up with masked thugs abducting our neighbors. And fed up with a system that funds genocide while trapping us in debt just to get medical care.”

Republicans and pro-Israel groups launched attacks on Hamawy, tying him to the so-called “Blind Sheikh” convicted in connection with the 1995 bombing of the World Trade Center and with a medical charity Hamawy volunteered with during the Bosnian genocide that was later accused of being a front for Al-Qaeda.

Hamway downplayed both attacks, arguing his ties to the Sheikh were minimal, and noting the group he worked for was the object of praise from the international community at the time.

However, it’s clear the GOP attacks on him won’t stop after his victory.

“How in the hell has a defense witness in the 1993 WTC bombing, with ties to Al-Qaeda been nominated by the Democrats to serve in Congress?,” Rep. Mike Lawler (R-N.Y.) wrote on social media on Tuesday night. “If elected in November, Congress should fully investigate his ties to terrorist organizations and determine whether he is fit to serve.”

Hamawy’s long record ― including a stint in the Army National Guard as a combat trauma surgeon, during which he saved the life of Sen. Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.) after her helicopter was shot down in Iraq and time spent working at Ground Zero in the immediate aftermath of the 9/11 attacks ― ultimately mattered more to voters in the district.

While he was volunteering at a hospital in Gaza in 2025, Israel seized a nearby border crossing, trapping him and his colleagues in the hospital for more than a week. They were allowed to leave only after Duckworth intervened with then-President Joe Biden. Upon his return, he traveled to Congress to lobby for the end of what he viewed as a genocide, but found many members of Congress were uninterested in what he had to say.

The experience, Hamway said, helped him decide to run for Congress.

American Priorities suggested Hamawy’s victory shows Democrats should be unafraid to follow the party’s voters and adopt more progressive positions on Israel-Palestine issues, pointing to polling showing Democratic voters oppose sending money to Israel and believe the country is committing a genocide in Gaza.

“Dr. Hamawy spoke openly about these issues in one of the most closely watched Democratic primaries in the country, despite opposition from AIPAC and party leaders,” the group wrote. “Voters in Central Jersey showed they were listening. AIPAC’s spending is not unbeatable. The candidates, networks, and credibility built through investments like this will shape what comes next, including a 2028 presidential primary where these issues will be front and center.”

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