Wednesday, November 4, 2026

Nigerian-born Will Jawando, Junior Ezeonu, Oye Owolewa, Carol Kazeem, Gabe Okoye win U.S. midterm elections

Nigerian-born American politicians have recorded victories in the U.S. November 3 midterm elections, with Will Jawando, Junior Ezeonu, Oye Owolewa and Carol Kazeem.

• November 4, 2026
Will Jawando, Junior Ezeonu, Oye Owolewa, Carol Kazeem, Gabe Okoye
Will Jawando, Junior Ezeonu, Oye Owolewa, Carol Kazeem, Gabe Okoye

Nigerian-born American politicians have recorded victories in the U.S. November 3 midterm elections, with Will Jawando, Junior Ezeonu, Oye Owolewa and Carol Kazeem.

Their victories span states like Maryland, Texas, Washington, DC, Pennsylvania and Georgia.

Gabe Okoye won in Georgia. Mr Okoye won Georgia’s District 102. The Nigerian-born lawmaker was first elected in 2022 and represents parts of Gwinnett County.

In Maryland, Mr Jawando (Democrat) won the race for Montgomery County executive, defeating Republican Esther Wells.

According to results published by NBC Washington, Mr Jawando secured 237,383 votes, representing 78.15 per cent, against Wells’s 66,383 votes, or 21.85 per cent, with 72 per cent of the expected votes counted.

Mr Jawando, who previously served on the Montgomery County Council, is the son of a Nigerian father and an American mother.

In Texas, 27-year-old Mr Ezeonu secured a seat in the state’s House of Representatives for District 101. He was born in Onitsha, Anambra state.

He previously served on the Grand Prairie City Council after winning an election in 2021 and later became the city’s youngest mayor pro tempore.

In Washington, DC, Mr Owolewa won an at-large seat on the District of Columbia Council. The 51st reported that he secured 69 per cent of the votes, defeating independent candidate Elissa Silverman, who polled 21 per cent.

Mr Owolewa, a pharmacist and son of Nigerian immigrants, previously served as the district’s shadow representative.

Ms Kazeem retained her seat in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives, representing District 159. The Democrat defeated Republican challenger Michael Bannon.

The U.S. midterm elections determine the composition of Congress, state legislatures and several local government positions halfway through a president’s four-year term.

We have recently deactivated our website's comment provider in favour of other channels of distribution and commentary. We encourage you to join the conversation on our stories via our Facebook, Twitter and other social media pages.

More from Peoples Gazette

Nigerian Bar Association

States

Independence: NBA urges Nigerians to expect better future

The NBA said that ordinary Nigerians should be deriving benefit from the subsidy removal rather than hardship.

farmers

Agriculture

FG tasks ECOWAS on leveraging financing strategies for agroecology

The federal government has urged stakeholders in the agriculture and finance sectors in the West Africa region to leverage financing strategies to enhance agroecology practices

Katsina State

Politics

Katsina youths pledge to deliver over 2 million votes to Atiku

“Katsina State is Atiku’s political base because it is his second home.”

Deputy health minister Iziaq Adekunle Salako

World

Nigeria pledges five million glasses, 25,000 free cataract surgeries by 2027

The Nigerian government says it will distribute five million pairs of reading glasses and provide 25,000 subsidised cataract surgeries by 2027.

British monarch Charles Philip George III

World

King Charles sad over transatlantic slave trade that ravaged Nigeria, other nations

“We cannot change the actions of those who came before us. We can, however, learn from the past,” said King Charles.

South African president, Cyril Ramaphosa

Africa

South Africans vote amid discontent over failing services, infrastructure

More than 29 million voters are registered, but the last municipal elections in 2021 drew fewer than half of them to the polls, with turnout at just 46 per cent.

U.S. court room

Anti-Corruption

Corporate America Lending executive Ron Cook indicted for defrauding Farmer MAC, others of $65 million

Ron Cook, a 58-year-old man from Fresno, California, is an executive of Corporate America Lending, a lending company allegedly used to carry out a $65 million fraud scheme.

Armed bandits

Jos

Bandits kill 18-year-old vigilante in Plateau

Bandits killed an 18-year-old vigilante, Divine Davou, in Rachas village, Heipang District, Barkin Ladi council area of Plateau, on Tuesday.

2Baba

Showbiz

TuFace to release first album in six years

Music star Innocent ‘TuFace’ Idibia is set to return with a new album, ‘Oldest Young Man’, after a six-year break from album releases.