23-year-old Indian-American woman, Nabeela Syed, a Democrat, scripted history by becoming the youngest member to get elected to the Illinois General Assembly in the recent US midterm elections.
Syed handily defeated Republican incumbent Chris Bos in the 8 November election for the 51st district in the Illinois State House with 52.3 per cent votes.
Celebrating her victory, the young woman took to Twitter to introduce herself to the world. “My name is Nabeela Syed. I’m a 23-year- Muslim, Indian-American woman. We just flipped a Republican-held suburban district. And in January, I’ll be the youngest member of the Illinois General Assembly.”
“When I announced for State Representative, I made it a mission to genuinely engage in conversation with people – to give them a reason to get involved in our democracy and hope for better leadership that represents their values,” she further wrote on her Instagram post.
Syed, who was born in Palatine, graduated from the University of Berkley, California with a degree in Political Science and Business Administration.
At her university, she served as the president of a pro-bono consulting organization assisting local businesses and nonprofits.
Nabeela will serve the communities of Palatine, Inverness, Barrington, Hoffman Estates, Rolling Meadows, Lake Zurich, Hawthorn Woods, Kildeer, Deer Park, Vernon Hills and Long Grove.
According to her official website, she served as the Campaign Manager for current Township High School District 211 School Board Member Tim Mc Gowan — a campaign that emphasized the values of accountability, community, and equity in our schools.
Nabeela currently works for a non-profit in digital strategy and her work includes supporting a variety of civic engagement efforts including voter mobilization, ending sexual assault on college campuses, and promoting gender equity.
She has worked with a variety of organizations, including EMILY’s List, to raise money to elect Democrats to Congress.
Further, Nabeela serves as a mentor for youth as a high school debate coach. She is also active in her religious community at the Islamic Society of Northwest Suburbs and is a strong advocate for promoting interfaith dialogue and empowering young Muslim women to lead.
Recalling her campaign days, Nabeela said, “We talked to seniors about the rising cost of prescription drugs. We talked to working families about the growing burden of property taxes. We talked to women, pledging that I would protect their right to reproductive healthcare. We spoke with parents about their desire to strengthen commonsense gun safety laws.”
