Casting the current Democratic party as out-of-touch and unwilling, Kat Abughazaleh announced her candidacy for the U.S. House of Representatives via Youtube on March 24, with hopes of representing the Ninth District of Illinois (of which Skokie is a part). The announcement pits her against Rep. Jan Schakowsky, the district’s House member since 1999.
Abughazaleh does not currently live in the Ninth District, though she said in a recent YouTube video that she and her partner were seeking to move as quickly as possible to Andersonville, Edgewater, or Rogers Park. According to the video, she is currently close enough to the district to take a bus there. “I wanted to run there because, A, we are going to move there, but B, this is also one of the most progressive, diverse districts in the country,” Abughazaleh told North Star News. “This district is always on the forefront of every single movement…I can’t think of a better place to just try something.”
Born in Texas, Abughazaleh recalls her family participating significantly in her state’s Republican party. Relocating to Tucson, Arizona, where she said she witnessed much more economic injustice, prompted her to change her views. After earning a bachelor’s in international affairs, with a focus on security policy, in 2020 (per her website), she began creating video content for Media Matters for America, while making videos criticizing Fox News outside of work. Despite being let go in May 2024, as Media Matters struggled to fund a legal defense against a lawsuit by Elon Musk, she was able to continue as a social media creator, both on her own and for the outlets Mother Jones and Zeteo. Moving to Chicago in July for her partner’s job, she attended the 2024 Democratic National Convention—and joined those who protested outside when it was announced that no Palestinian person would be allowed to speak.
“A concern for the rights and treatment of Palestinian civilians,” as she described in an email to NSN, is one part of Abughazaleh’s platform. Her website calls for an everlasting ceasefire in Gaza and for all Oct. 7 hostages to be released, as well as for the U.S. government to make certain that the “Leahy laws,” which prohibit the U.S. from helping “foreign security force units” that may have committed human rights abuses, are enforced. “My view on this [is that] we need to just be knowing where our money is going,” Abughazaleh said. (Abughazaleh herself is Palestinian-American, but said her stance is irrespective of her identity.)
Meanwhile, on her website, Abughazaleh has promised to show “unflinching solidarity with the queer community.” She told NSN that in the event of legislation like last year’s National Defense Authorization Act, which linked military funding to restrictions on gender-affirming care, she “wouldn’t vote for it, and would do everything I could to get that bill changed.” She has proposed expansions of Social Security and Veterans’ Affairs Department benefits, which she would partially pay for via a 2% tax on money held by individuals worth at least $100 million, as well as with money saved by implementing a universal single-payer healthcare system.
It’s a long bucket list for someone running to be part of the minority in both the House and the Senate. “I can’t promise universal healthcare,” Abughazaleh said when asked if she thought she’d still be able to have an effect as a member of Congress. “I can promise fighting against authoritarianism and trying to stop Trump’s agenda in any way. I can promise that, if there is any helpful bipartisan legislation to be had…I would love to work on it” (giving the 2022 CHIPs and Science Act as an example).
What’s more, Abughazaleh says, in Congress, she would offer a wider range of services to her constituents than the average congressperson—in particular, implementing a chat-style method by which people can communicate with her on her website. Simply by campaigning, Abughazaleh has said she hopes to benefit the Ninth District community. She promised in her announcement video to devote donations to her campaign to book drives, clothing exchanges, and other similar events.
As for Rep. Schakowsky, she has told reporters that she is “glad to see new faces getting involved as we stand up against the Trump administration,” and has not yet officially announced a reelection bid. Asked why Niles North students should vote for her instead of Schakowsky, Abughazaleh said that she understood what life was like for students today. “I mean, I’m 26, but I also grew up with school shooter drills. None of us even got the idea of the promise of home ownership and not having student debt and all of these things. It sucks, and we deserve better.”
Illinois’ Democratic primary is set for March 17, 2026.
