Surgeon who served in Gaza, Adam Hamawy, becomes New Jersey’s first Muslim in Congress
Photo: Collected
Egyptian-American surgeon Adam Hamawy has been elected to the US House of Representatives from New Jersey’s 12th congressional district. In a win that came amid the Democratic Party’s remarkable success nationwide, he also made history—he is the first Muslim, and also the first Egyptian-American, to represent New Jersey in the US Congress.
In his speech after the historic win in last Tuesday’s midterm elections, Hamawy sent a direct message to the people of Gaza. Addressing the men, women and children of Gaza and Palestine, he said the smiles on their faces give him the courage and hope to keep fighting to build a beautiful world.
According to MS NOW’s projection, Republicans have so far held a majority in the House of Representatives with 218 seats, against the Democratic Party’s 214. Once Adam Hamawy and other winning Democrats are sworn in in January, the Democratic Party is set to regain the House majority with 250 seats.
A Middle East Eye correspondent was present at Hamawy’s election results watch event in Princeton, New Jersey. In his victory speech there, Hamawy said he was ready to get to work without delay and declared that he would ‘hold Donald Trump accountable’. Presenting himself as a surgeon, he said they are going to stop this bleeding. He also said he would fight for the rights of every American whom the Washington establishment has long left behind.
The election celebration showed an unprecedented picture of solidarity. Congresswoman Bonnie Watson Coleman embraced Hamawy, called him on stage and gave him the chance to deliver his victory speech. Members of Jewish Voice for Peace, holding placards reading ‘Jews for Hamawy’ (the Jewish community in support of Hamawy), also expressed solidarity with his win.
Yet this picture of celebration was the complete opposite of the harsh reality Hamawy faced during the campaign. Speaking of his own experience, he lamented that he had never in his life seen Islamophobia so open, so loud and so acceptable, and that it is now seen not only in New Jersey but across the country. In his words, it was always there, but it has now become open, universal and extremely violent; his family, colleagues and friends have been targeted, and his loyalty and patriotism have been questioned.
Hamawy’s pro-Palestinian stance played a big role in this victory. Numerous supporters turned up at his election event wearing keffiyehs and holding American flags. New Jersey voter Yoshi told Middle East Eye that Hamawy’s clear position on Palestine had deeply influenced him. He said that when Hamawy decided to run, seeing him spread the message of ‘healthcare, not bombs’ had touched his heart.
Yoshi worked as a volunteer in the campaign. In his view, the win is a victory for a grassroots movement of ordinary pro-Palestinian people. He said organised ordinary people really can defeat organised money; many of his fellow volunteers had earlier also led the ‘Uncommitted New Jersey’ campaign. For Yoshi and many like him, the Palestine issue was the main test of political suitability. He added that their work is not over yet; the real work will begin the day after Dr Adam Hamawy’s win, because Gaza is still besieged and bombs are still being dropped there. They do not want their tax money spent on war and genocide any more.
It was because of these pro-Palestinian and progressive positions that Hamawy faced fierce attacks from pro-Israel and far-right groups during the campaign. Laughing off those attacks in an interview with Middle East Eye before the primary, he said he had done far harder things in his life than run a political campaign. What, he asked, would they do at most—abuse him, or attack him? He had seen far more terrible situations and scenes with his own eyes.
During the campaign, The Wall Street Journal published an opinion piece attempting to link Hamawy’s ideals with the ideology of the convicted Muslim preacher Omar Abdel Rahman (known as the ‘Blind Sheikh’). Abdel Rahman was charged in 1995 with conspiring to assassinate then Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak at the UN headquarters; the case is one of the biggest terrorism cases in US history. He died in prison in 2017. Adam Hamawy was one of about 200 witnesses in that trial. In his testimony before the jury, he said that although the preacher expressed anti-American sentiment, he gave no direct, specific instructions on how to carry out killings.
Overcoming all the adversity of the campaign, the win has given supporters new hope. Nancy Sedlak, a member of the New Jersey Education Association, told Middle East Eye that after the dirty politics of the past few years, the result has restored her faith in American politics. In her words, she can finally breathe a little sigh of relief; the past 10 years have been terrible, and this win has created new hope for restoring democracy. She said she voted for Hamawy because of his sincere support for public education and his pledge to revive the middle class.
At the heart of the campaign of Hamawy, a US Army officer and experienced surgeon, were economic justice and improving the lives of ordinary working people. With the slogan ‘healthcare, not bombs’, he has promised universal healthcare for all (Medicare for All), affordable housing and education, strong protection for immigrants and civil liberties, and a human rights-centred US foreign policy instead of endless wars.
The son of Egyptian immigrant parents, Adam Hamawy grew up in New Jersey. To serve the country and pay for his own education, he joined the New Jersey Army National Guard. As a medical student, he went on his first humanitarian medical mission to war-torn Bosnia. After the 9/11 terrorist attacks in New York in 2001, he was directly involved in treating the injured rescued from Ground Zero.
Just three years later, Hamawy joined the US Army as a combat trauma surgeon. In 2004, current Illinois senator Tammy Duckworth was seriously injured when her helicopter crashed in the Iraq war; he made an extraordinary contribution by saving her life.
For the past 30 years, Hamawy has served tirelessly as a volunteer doctor in war- and disaster-hit regions of the world, including Sudan, Syria, Lebanon, Palestine, Turkey and Jordan. In particular, during the worst period of Israeli aggression in Gaza in 2024 and 2025, he was there himself, working on the front line to save Palestinian lives amid a badly collapsed healthcare system.
Source: Middle East Eye
Background
According to a New Jersey Monitor report of 2 June 2026, Hamawy won the Democratic primary for the seat of retiring representative Bonnie Watson Coleman, beating 11 other Democrats. It was his first run for elected office.
Sources
Original report: Bangladesh Pratidin
Background sources: New Jersey Monitor, 2 June 2026
