Indian-origin Democrat Ghazala Hashmi has won the Virginia lieutenant governor’s race, defeating Republican John Reid. Hashmi is the first Muslim and first South Asian American to serve in the Virginia Senate, representing the 15th Senatorial District. Hashmi’s latest victory means her Senate seat will have to be filled in a special election.
She entered politics in 2019, and in an upset victory, she flipped a Republican-held state Senate seat and was elected to the Virginia General Assembly.
In 2024, five years later, she was named Chair of the Senate Education and Health Committee, a critical leadership post for two key Democratic priorities: reproductive freedom and public education.
Ghazala Hashmi Religion
Ghazala Hashmi religion is Muslim.
Ghazala Hashmi previous office
Ghazala Hashmi previous office is Virginia State Senator.
Ghazala Hashmi Issues
Ghazala Hashmi once said regarding the issue that “I will never stop fighting for reproductive health care, including access to abortion and to contraception.”
Ghazala Hashmi casino
There is no official information regarding the Ghazala Hashmi casino.
Ghazala Hashmi reddit
Virginia’s Ghazala Hashmi becomes the first Muslim woman elected statewide in the U.S.
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Ghazala Hashmi Polls
Plenty will be written tomorrow as it should: Ds +14 in VA gov (+10 predicted), Ds +13 in NJ gov (+3 predicted), CA countergerrymandering wins, PA judges retained. But don’t miss this: all NJ & VA counties shifted blue, and the Ds flipped at least 13 of the 49 R seats in VA house pic.twitter.com/QNggguR3GG
— Chaos in the Green Zone (@ThomasMowle) November 5, 2025
Ghazala Hashmi Family
Hashmi was born into a Hyderabadi family in Hyderabad, India, to Tanveer and Zia Hashmi in 1964. She spent her childhood at her maternal grandparents’ place in Malakpet.
Her maternal grandfather was employed in the finance department of the Government of Andhra Pradesh.
Ghazala Hashmi Husband
Ghazala Hashmi’s husband’s name is Azhar Rafiq.
Ghazala Hashmi Children
Ghazala Hashmi has 2 daughters.
Ghazala Hashmi Twitter
Ghazala Hashmi twitter profile is https://x.com/GhazalaHashmi
Ghazala Hashmi vs. John Reid II
The connection between Ghazala Hashmi and John Reid II is that they were the Democratic and Republican nominees, respectively, in the highly competitive 2025 Virginia Lieutenant Governor’s race.
Ghazala Hashmi Educational Qualification
Hashmi received a Bachelor of Arts in English from Georgia Southern University and was later awarded a Ph.D. in English from Emory University.
