By Kelly Wang
ASHWIN RAMASWAMI ’21 (Senate, GA)
Recent Stanford University graduate Ashwin Ramaswami (D) lost his bid for a Georgia state senate seat Tuesday against incumbent, first-term State Sen. Shawn Still, an ardent supporter of Donald Trump who had challenged the integrity of the last presidential election.
The race was among the most competitive in Georgia, itself a battleground in the national contest between Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris. Ramaswami won 46 percent of the vote, losing to Still by just under 7,000 votes.
Ramasami’s campaign raised more than $942,000, far more than his opponent, who raised around $450,000, according to the Georgia Campaign Finance System. In an interview prior to the vote, Ramaswami said he viewed the state’s shift toward the Democratic Party in the previous two election cycles as a sign that voters in Georgia “have been changing their minds.”
“They’re starting to realize that the Republican Party does not necessarily align with people who want law and order, people who want safety for their communities,” he said.
But Still, who maintained that Trump won the 2020 presidential race, spent extensively to undermine public perception of Ramaswami’s campaign. Ramaswami and his family received death threats as a result of the contentious back and forth between the two candidates, according to a post on X from Ramaswami.
Still distributed photos of the Stanford alum with warnings that read, “PARENTS BEWARE,” according to The New York Times. The flyers cautioned parents after Ramaswami’s campaign was unsuccessful in obtaining the names of high school students, in an effort to encourage them to vote and recruit volunteers for the campaign.
Initially, Ramaswami used his platform to focus on issues such as the protection of reproductive healthcare and the passage of common-sense gun safety laws. But Still’s attacks on Ramaswami prompted a response.
Still was indicted in August of 2023 for signing a certificate that falsely declared Trump won Georgia in 2020. Ramaswami made this a campaign issue in flyers that were distributed later in the race, labeling Still as “wrong for Georgia.” It was observing these breaches of election security that inspired Ramaswami to run for office in the first place.
Ramaswami, 25, earned his law degree at Georgetown Law School after graduating from Stanford in 2021 with a Bachelor of Science degree in Computer Science. He aspired to use that degree to combat recent challenges posed by artificial intelligence, misinformation and data privacy, after working in the sectors of technological and election security.
Named the 2023 freshman legislator of the year by the Georgia Chamber of Commerce, Still graduated from the University of Alabama with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Communications. He served as finance chairman for the Georgia Republican Party before his tenure as senator.
On Tuesday, Ramaswami conceded the race in an announcement to X.
“I’m looking forward to working together on the issues that matter to our district,” he wrote. “Our campaign brought together historically overlooked communities and turned out the vote like never before. Onwards and upwards!”
ADAM SCHIFF ’82 (Senate, CA)
The race to fill California’s U.S. senate seat held for more than three decades by Dianne Feinstein ’55 will be filled by another Stanford alum: Adam Schiff ’82, a 12-term Democratic U.S. representative from Los Angeles who defeated former Los Angeles Dodgers star Steve Garvey (R).
As the front-runner for months, Schiff significantly outpaced Garvey in fundraising, collecting more than $46 million compared with Garvey’s $18 million, according to the Federal Election Commission.
Schiff emerged from a crowded primary held in March by, in part, promoting Garvey’s candidacy over those of fellow Democratic challengers. California’s primary system selects the top two vote getters to compete in the general election, regardless of party.
Schiff calculated that in California, where registered Democrats vastly outnumber Republicans, he would have a far better chance of defeating Garvey than another Democrat in the general election. His tactic proved correct, but drew criticism from some members of the Democratic Party.
Garvey campaigned on the basis of his celebrity status, much like the approach taken by former California governor and President Ronald Reagan, a one-time actor, and former California governor and actor Arnold Schwarzenegger when they entered politics. But the state has moved to the left since those Republicans succeeded, and Garvey’s media exposure and command of the issues proved minimal.
Schiff graduated from Stanford in 1982 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science. After earning a law degree from Harvard Law School, he worked with the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Los Angeles and prosecuted Richard Miller, the first FBI agent accused of spying for Russia. Schiff’s past work in prosecution informed his priority on public safety in addition to his emphasis on fighting climate change.
When considering the political agendas of celebrities-turned politicians, Bruce Cain, a Stanford professor of political science and director of the Bill Lane Center for the American West, drew a stark contrast between Schwarzenegger and Garvey. The professor cited the large Democratic turnout in a presidential election year as one factor working against Garvey.
According to The New York Times, Schiff promised supporters at a victory party that he would continue working to defend democratic principles during the next Trump administration.
“I am committed to taking on the big fights to protect our freedoms and to protect our democracy,” he said. “California will continue to be at the forefront of progress, the bulwark of democracy, the champion of innovation and the protector of our rights and freedoms.”
JOSH HARDER ’08 (House of Representatives, CA)
Stanford alum and U.S. Rep. Josh Harder ’08 (D) holds a narrow lead over Stockton Mayor Kevin Lincoln (R) to represent the 9th district of California after a campaign that focused on crime and immigration.
Harder raised more than $5 million in the race, while Lincoln’s campaign had $2 million at their disposal, according to the Federal Election Commission. He remains optimistic about his chances to continue as U.S. representative for a fifth term.
Harder earned Bachelor of Arts degrees in Economics and Political Science from Stanford in 2008. He worked in venture capital after graduating from a joint MBA/MPP program at Harvard Business School and the Kennedy School of Government.
Lincoln served in the United States Marine Corps. He has been mayor of Stockton since 2021 and emphasized issues of crime, cost of living and the impact of fentanyl use in the community. His work as mayor involved investments in homeless shelters and housing, efforts the candidate claimed was driven by personal experience with hardship in a survey from The Sacramento Bee.
Harder expressed similar concerns about increased crime in California, emphasizing his efforts to bolster funding support for police departments as a state representative. The two candidates also concurred on securing the U.S.-Mexico border: Harder sought to advance drone technology and screening for drugs and weapons, while Lincoln aimed to secure the border to halt the flow of drugs.
Harder encouraged supporters to remain patient while waiting for official results in a post on X in response to his early lead.
“It’s too early to know the final results, but we are feeling optimistic with the early returns and I’m humbled by the outpouring of support,” he wrote. “It’s important that every ballot is counted and we look forward to sharing additional information as we learn more.”
JOSH HAWLEY ’02 (Senate, MO)
U.S. senator Josh Hawley of Missouri (R) held onto his seat in what was a hard-fought race that touched on issues of abortion rights, the rural economy and national security.
Hawley’s victory was a key win for Republicans given the party’s razor-thin edge in the U.S. Senate. It also kept in office a leading supporter of president-elect Donald Trump.
Hawley was the first senator to publicly challenge President Biden’s 2020 victory in Pennsylvania, a key to Biden’s victory margin. But Hawley’s Democratic opponent, U.S. Marine veteran Lucas Kunce, did not emphasize Hawley’s past election criticisms and chose instead to attack Hawley’s opposition to reproductive rights.
According to the Federal Election Commission, Kunce raised more than $20 million in the last two years as he received support from donors across all 50 states. He rose to prominence as the state’s “one shot to defeat Josh Hawley,” as the Democratic candidate described himself in a Facebook post. Meanwhile, Hawley led in campaign funds at $26 million.
Hawley graduated from Stanford in 2002 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in History and earned a law degree from Yale Law School in 2006. He went on to serve as law clerk of the United States Court of Appeals and attorney general of Missouri.
Democratic opponent Kunce graduated from Yale with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Classical Civilization and earned his law degree from the University of Missouri School of Law. The Jefferson City native served for 13 years in the Marine Corps, when he completed tours of duty in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Many of Hawley’s policy positions were rooted in criticism of the Biden administration. The Republican was very vocal in his opposition to LGBTQ rights and abortion (unless involving rape, incest or the jeopardized life of a mother) — a key stance that Kunce highlighted to discourage voters from supporting Hawley.
Kunce condemned corporate power and banked on his strong advocacy for abortion rights to attract voter support. The Marine veteran often referred to his military experience as informing his foreign policy views.
Citing the amount of money spent on troop deployments abroad, Kunce criticized government officials for claiming that there wasn’t enough to support communities in Missouri, according to the St. Louis Public Radio (STLPR). Hawley claimed Kunce was the enemy of farmers and ranchers in the state, hoping to diminish Kunce’s support within a key constituency. This will be Hawley’s second term.
“[The Democrats] said they were going to turn Missouri blue,” Hawley said in a victory speech, flanked by family, according to the Missouri Independent. “They said they would invest whatever it took to beat us. They said they were going to make an example of the State of Missouri. Well, tonight we made an example of them.”
