Nina Ahmad, a Bangladeshi-American running for Pennsylvania’s Lieutenant Governor, has failed to secure her party’s nomination for the post.
With 85 percent votes counted, she was trailing her nearest rival John Fetterman by more than 100,000 votes and he has been projected as the winner by US media outlets.
In a crowded Democratic race comprising five candidates including the incumbent Lt Governor Mike Stack, Ahmad bagged the second highest number of votes.
The real setback in the race was for Mike Stack, who became the first lieutenant governor to lose re-election in a primary since the holder of the position was permitted two terms nearly half a century ago.
Ahmad, a molecular biologist and entrepreneur, is a first-generation Bangladeshi immigrant who served as Philadelphia’s Deputy Mayor until late last year and also worked for President Obama’s Advisory Commission on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders.
Her campaign was hopeful of a victory but did consider Fetterman as a tough rival.
Experts believe that Ahmad ran a strong campaign and despite this loss, she has a strong future in Pennsylvania politics.