John, I know firsthand how difficult it is to be underrepresented. Being a young, Muslim woman and a daughter of Pakistani and Indian immigrants, I don’t often see people like me in office.

What I do see is the barriers stacked against Muslims – often discredited or called “unelectable” because of our identities, or drowned out by insurmountable amounts of dark money.

Even with these obstacles, young, progressive Muslims made historic gains in 2022, securing 38 seats in state legislatures – breaking down the barriers stacked so high against them.

John, because of you, we used our grassroots momentum to rally behind Muslims in states like Georgia where protecting Democratic values was the top priority. But we can’t just sit back. The far-right is scheming to take back every seat so they can push their GOP agenda. We can’t let that happen.

John, when I ran for office, I faced hateful rhetoric at the hands of the GOP – something Muslim candidates are so familiar with. But every Islamophobic comment, every threat, and every question raised about whether I “belong” made me even more determined to fight for underrepresented, immigrant communities.

This is why we must elect diverse candidates and strong progressives up and down the ballot.

But I’ll be honest, John: The only way we can get on a path towards a true representative democracy is by garnering grassroots support and getting behind young progressives. We need your help to make that happen against the odds.