admin The top priorities of the first Somali American of Ohio are education, infrastructure, and health care which leader her to win a nomination of a major party in the state.
Munira Abdullahi won her race as a Democrat in the 9th State House District, which represents part of northeast Columbus. She won by more than 67% of the vote over her opponent Paul Filippelli. She says that she feels she is ready to work on her priorities.
Abdullahi is a firm believer in equality and quality of life. “I think it is not fair that just because of your zip code that you might not be entitled to a quality facility or a quality education in general,” says Abdullahi.
Abdullahi, who is 26 years old, was born in Kenya i
a refugee camp. She moved with her family to Columbus, Ohio when she was five years old and grew up on the Northeast Side of the city. She graduated from Columbus Alternative High School after which she went on to earn a Political Science and International Relations degree from the Ohio State University in 2019.
Abdullahi knows there will be challenges working with the majority Republicans in the Ohio House.
Abdullahi is aware that working there will be difficult but not impossible. “It will be difficult, but I don’t think it will be impossible,” says Abdullahi. “Some are of the opinion that I am naive, but I believe that we can find solutions to these issues that I think are bipartisan.”
Abdullahi attributes her success to her parents who instilled her with inspiration and led to her goals. She also hopes to make healthcare and medications more affordable because as a person with type 1 diabetes she has struggled with high insulin prices and high medical bills.
Abdullahi states that working at non-profits made her realize that a lot of these issues are not really fixes, but more like band-aids on things. “Most of it comes from poor legislation,” says Abdullahi. “So, I decided to address these problems right from the root if I really wish to help more people.”
Abdullahi does not face a Republican opponent in the November 8 election, which makes it almost certain that she will take office in January.
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