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Ammar Campa-Najjar
Personal details
Born (1989-02-24) February 24, 1989 (age 35)
La Mesa, California, U.S.
Political partyDemocratic
EducationSouthwestern College
San Diego State University (BA)
WebsiteCampaign website

Ammar Campa-Najjar (born February 24, 1989)[1] is a United States naval officer, perennial candidate,[2] and former official at the United States Department of Labor. Campa-Najjar has twice been a candidate for the United States House of Representatives. He secured 48.3 percent of the vote in the 2018 election against incumbent Duncan D. Hunter.[3] Campa-Najjar lost again in a 2020 campaign to represent California's 50th congressional district, which encompassed the northeastern segments of San Diego County, and a small section of Riverside County. In 2022, he unsuccessfully ran for the position of mayor of Chula Vista, California. In 2023, he was sworn in as an officer in the United States Navy.[4]

Early life and education

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Campa-Najjar was born in La Mesa, California, and raised in Jamul and Chula Vista, California.[5][6][7] His father, Yasser Najjar, is Palestinian, and his mother, Abigail Campa, is Mexican American. In 1997, when he was eight years old, he and his family moved to the Gaza Strip.[3] In 1998, he attended a Catholic school in the Gaza Strip.[8] After living in Gaza for four years, he, his mother, and brother moved back to San Diego County.[3] Growing up in post 9/11 America, Ammar felt he was not "Arab enough in Gaza, Latino enough for the barrio, or American enough in my own country."[8] Ammar wondered if America would accept someone of diverse heritage, saying in the Los Angeles Times “In 2008, the country said, ‘Yes, we can,’ and elected this skinny brown guy with a funny name. It really kind of inspired me.”

When he was 15, he worked as a janitor to help his single mother pay bills.[9]While in high school, Campa-Najjar converted from Islam to Christianity.[10] He considers himself to be Latino and Arab-American, and is fluent in English, Spanish, and Arabic.[11][12]

He attended community college at Southwestern College, and earned a dual Bachelor of Arts degree in philosophy and psychology from San Diego State University.[13][14]

Family

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Campa-Najjar's father Yasser Najjar is Palestinian and his mother Abigail Campa is Mexican American. His mother is a practicing Catholic.[7] Following the killing of Campa-Najjar's paternal grandparents by Israeli commandos for the involvement of his grandfather Abu Najjar - a founder and leader of Fatah[15] - in Black September and alleged role in the 1972 Munich Massacre, Yasser Najjar and his siblings were sent to Cairo by King Hassan II of Morocco. The siblings were separated over the following years with Yasser attending school in England before immigrating to the US and obtaining American citizenship. He moved to San Diego in 1981 and earned an MBA from San Diego State University. Abigail Campa grew up in the Logan Heights neighborhood of San Diego, and she and Yasser married in the 1980s. In 1994, Yasser traveled to Gaza to work for the newly legitimized Palestinian National Authority and explore his family's roots. While working for the PNA he was seen as a moderate who advocated for peace. In his later years Yasser Najjar was an important internal critic of Palestinian hardliners. During his time in Gaza he attempted to counteract the rising influence of Hamas.[3]

Campa-Najjar's grandfather Muhammad Youssef al-Najjar, known as "Abu Youssef", has been the subject of significant controversy. In 1965, while working in Kuwait, Abu Youssef founded Fatah along with Yasser Arafat and other exiled Palestinians.[3] He was long believed to have been affiliated with the Munich massacre. He was among those targeted in Mossad assassinations following the Munich massacre. On April 9, 1973 al-Najjar and his wife were killed in their Beirut, Lebanon apartment in an Israeli raid on Lebanon. The attack occurred while their children were home. The Israeli commando team was led by future prime minister Ehud Barak.[3] Campa-Najjar and Barak met in Washington, D.C. in October 2019.[16]

In February 2018, a book published by Ronen Bergman, Rise and Kill First, challenged the historical assumption that those targeted in Operation Wrath of God were actually behind the Munich massacre.[17] In 2019 in response to this new information, Campa-Najjar withdrew some of the condemnations he had made against his grandfather.[18]

Career

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Campa-Najjar worked as a deputy regional field director for the Barack Obama 2012 presidential campaign.[19] During the Obama Administration, Campa-Najjar was a White House intern and worked in the Labor Department's Office of Public Affairs for the Employment and Training Administration. As a White House intern, his clerical responsibilities included reading and helping select letters that President Obama would read each day.[20]

He also worked for the United States Hispanic Chamber of Commerce as the communications and marketing director.[21] In this capacity, he prepared to interview then-candidate Donald Trump, who ultimately pulled out of the scheduled event, despite having earlier told Geraldo Rivera in an interview that he would attend.[22][23][24] Following the election, NBC News[25] and The San Diego Union-Tribune[26] published his op ed, with a slightly different version published by The Washington Post a few days later, expressing his faith in America despite Trump's election. "Let's not seek comfort in the easy traps of either normalizing or demonizing the decision half of America has made. We must do what is hard, what is necessary and what is right."[8]

In 2017, The Hill published another op ed by Campa-Najjar where he advocated for enhanced vetting and the empowerment of moderate Muslims to help end terrorism.[27] He has advocated for apprenticeship programs that pay people as they learn, for example the Registered Apprenticeship job training initiative, which has bipartisan support.[28][29][30]

2018 congressional campaign

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Campa-Najjar cited the call to service in Barack Obama's farewell address as an inspiration to run for Congress.[31] Campa-Najjar supports environmentally sustainable developments, including solar farms.[32] Campa-Najjar advocated for registering young people to vote, especially those who would be 18 by 2018, because they would be on the receiving end of climate change and increasing levels of indebtedness.[33] His top domestic issue was training Americans to fill job vacancies, and his top international issue was the Israeli–Palestinian conflict, and he opposed Trump's suggested wall with Mexico and travel ban.[34] He cited economic inequality as a top issue facing California, "other than the severe droughts and fires."[30] The district in which he ran for office was about 35% Latino and 15% voters of Middle Eastern descent.[34]

On February 2, 2018, The San Diego Union-Tribune reported that Campa-Najjar had out-raised both the Republican incumbent, Duncan D. Hunter, and his Democratic rival, Josh Butner.[35] On June 5, 2018, Campa-Najjar placed second in the nonpartisan blanket primary, earning a chance to compete against Hunter in November.[19] Campa-Najjar credited support from Our Revolution as an important factor in the primary victory.[36] The Union-Tribune endorsed Campa-Najjar, citing the "lunacy" of incumbent Hunter.[37]

Campa-Najjar lost the 2018 election with 48.3% of the votes to Hunter's 51.7%.[38]

Campaign controversies

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During the contest, the Hunter campaign ran an ad in which it claimed that Campa-Najjar had received support from the Council on American–Islamic Relations and the Muslim Brotherhood. PolitiFact found the claim to be false.[39] In October 2018, Duncan L. Hunter, father of Duncan D. Hunter, attacked Campa-Najjar as a security risk.[40]

Campa-Najjar's 2018 candidacy attracted international attention due to allegations that his grandfather was involved with the Munich massacre.[41] He acknowledged and denounced the alleged crimes of his grandfather, who died 16 years before he was born.[42]

Campa-Najjar's campaign received a notable degree of coverage following the indictment of his opponent for stealing campaign funds for personal use.[43] Hunter's scandal gave his campaign a boost.[44] Campa-Najjar did not blame bigotry for his defeat.[45]

2020 congressional campaign

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In 2019, Campa-Najjar announced that he would run for the same seat again in 2020.[46][47] He announced his candidacy on Twitter a day after filing his paperwork with the FEC.[48] He stated that his 2020 campaign would run on the dual platform of economic security and national security.[49] Campa-Najjar said that for the election he would make a more concerted effort to reach out to conservative voters, especially veterans.[50]

Initially characterized as a progressive during his 2018 run, Campa-Najjar walked back his support of Medicare for All and a Green New Deal, calling the latter "impractical".[51][52] In October 2020, a podcaster posted screenshots purporting to show Campa-Najjar identifying as a blue dog Democrat who intended to become an independent if elected in 2020.[53]

Campa-Najjar appeared in a radio interview with Defend East County founder Justin Haskins. He said in the interview that he would likely support Judge Amy Coney Barrett's confirmation to the U.S. Supreme Court and, if elected, would consider investigating Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton. He also reiterated stances he had previously made in support of Donald Trump’s border wall and against his impeachment.[54]

Under election rules in California, the top two vote-getters in the March 3, 2020, primary, regardless of party affiliation, later faced each other in the general election. Campa-Najjar placed first in the primary, and faced a November runoff election against Republican former Congressman Darrell Issa.[55] Polls show a competitive election in the 50th district, which the Union-Tribune described as "a statistical dead heat".[56]

On October 25, 2020, the Union-Tribune reported that Campa-Najjar had been out-raised by Issa.[57] The newspaper endorsed Campa-Najjar, citing him as "a breath of fresh air," in contrast to long-term congressman Issa "saying derogatory things".[58] Campa-Najjar eventually lost to Issa.[59][60]

2022 mayoral campaign

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In 2022, Campa-Najjar unsuccessfully ran for the position of mayor of Chula Vista, California — a city in San Diego County's South Bay region that is outside the congressional district in which he previously claimed residency.[61]

In the June primary election, Campa-Najjar received 22.56% of the vote, enabling him to progress to the general election. His opponent was John McCann, a city councilman.[62] McCann was elected mayor with 52% of the vote to Campa-Najjar's 48%.[63]

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On August 31, 2023, Ammar Campa-Najjar was sworn in as a U.S. Navy officer, which he described as his "proudest moment". He was sworn in aboard the USS Midway (now a museum), which he described as surreal because at the same site in 2018, Duncan D. Hunter held a press conference and made racially charged attacks against Campa-Najjar.[4]

References

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  1. ^ Candidate Conversation - Ammar Campa-Najjar (D)
  2. ^ Garcia, Alberto. "McCann Wins CV Mayor's Race, 3rd Loss for Campa-Najjar". La Prensa. SCNG. Retrieved October 2, 2024.
  3. ^ a b c d e f Clark, Charles T. (October 31, 2018). "Under attack by Hunter, Campa-Najjar's complex family history spans continents and generations of Middle East strife". The San Diego Union-Tribune. Retrieved September 6, 2019.
  4. ^ a b "When He Ran for Congress, Opponents Called Him a 'Security Risk' — Now He's Defending the U.S. (Exclusive)". Peoplemag. Retrieved September 4, 2023.
  5. ^ "Mayoral Candidate Campa-Najjar Shares Docs to Prove His Chula Vista Residency". October 22, 2022.
  6. ^ Scott, Charlotte. "Ammar Campa-Najjar Wants to Be The First Arab-American to Serve CA's 50th Dist". SpectrumNews1. Retrieved October 25, 2020.
  7. ^ a b Campa-Najjar, Ammar (November 16, 2016). "From the Barrio to Gaza to the White House (Commentary)". The San Diego Union-Tribune. Retrieved February 16, 2018.
  8. ^ a b c Campa-Najjar, Ammar (November 19, 2016). "I'm a Hispanic-Arab American, and Trump's election doesn't shake my belief in America". The Washington Post. Retrieved May 26, 2018.
  9. ^ Ruth, Brooke; Cavanaugh, Maureen (April 18, 2018). "Democrat Ammar Campa-Najjar Counting On Underrepresented Voters In 50th District". Midday Edition. KPBS. Retrieved June 27, 2018.
  10. ^ Latimer, Brian (April 20, 2017). "A young Latino Arab American throws his hat in the Congressional ring". NBC News Latino. Retrieved June 27, 2018.
  11. ^ Campa-Najjar, Ammar (June 21, 2017), "10 Fun Facts With Ammar Campa-Najjar", Pero Like, retrieved June 28, 2018 – via YouTube
  12. ^ Ruth, Brooke; Hindmon, Jade (October 2, 2018). "Ammar Campa-Najjar On His Race For the 50th Congressional Seat". Midday Edition. KPBS. Retrieved September 6, 2019.
  13. ^ "San Diego's Ammar Campa-Najjar runs for Congress, sings campaign song | San Diego Reader". www.sandiegoreader.com. Retrieved May 15, 2020.
  14. ^ "Campa-Najjar sits down with Village News". Village News. Retrieved May 15, 2020.
  15. ^ Clark, Charles. "Under attack by Hunter, Campa-Najjar's family history spans multiple continents and generations of Middle Eastern strife". San Diego Union-Tribune. SCNG. Retrieved October 2, 2024.
  16. ^ When a candidate met the ex-Israeli PM who killed his grandparents
  17. ^ Horovitz, David (January 26, 2018). "Mossad chose not to nab Mengele, didn't hunt down Munich terrorists, book claims". The Times of Israel. Retrieved September 6, 2019.
  18. ^ Touchberry, Ramsey (July 17, 2019). "Ammar Campa-Najjar, Duncan Hunter's Opponent, Has 'Renewed Skepticism' of Relative Once Tied to Terrorism". Newsweek. Retrieved September 6, 2019.
  19. ^ a b "Ammar Campa-Najjar". Ballotpedia. Retrieved June 27, 2018.
  20. ^ Mehta, Seema (August 23, 2017). "Obama's former staffers hope to build upon his legacy as they run for office". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved February 17, 2018.
  21. ^ Latimer, Brian (April 17, 2020). "A young Latino Arab American throws his hat in the Congressional ring". NBC News. Archived from the original on April 20, 2017. Retrieved March 1, 2021.
  22. ^ Rivera, Geraldo (September 3, 2015). "Geraldo to Trump: You're wrong, boss, immigrant murder wave is factually false". Fox News. Retrieved July 17, 2018.
  23. ^ Campbell, Colin (October 2, 2015). "Hispanic business group thrashes Donald Trump for suddenly backing out of its event". Business Insider. Retrieved July 17, 2018.
  24. ^ Schreckinger, Ben (October 1, 2015). "Donald Trump is about to walk into a buzz saw". Politico. Retrieved July 17, 2018.
  25. ^ "Voices: My American Story, from the barrio, to Gaza to the White House". NBC News. November 15, 2016.
  26. ^ "From the Barrio to Gaza to the White House". November 17, 2016.
  27. ^ Campa-Najjar, Ammar (February 25, 2017). "Enhanced vetting, moderate Muslims are key to ending terrorism". TheHill. Retrieved May 26, 2018.
  28. ^ Fadulu, Lolade (November 21, 2017). "The Push for Education Programs That Pay People As They Learn". The Atlantic. Retrieved February 16, 2018.
  29. ^ Campa-Najjar, Ammar (January 3, 2017). "Opinion: An Obama 'apprenticeship' that Trump should continue". NBC News Latino. Retrieved February 16, 2018.
  30. ^ a b "50th Congressional District candidate Ammar Campa-Najjar on the issues". The San Diego Union-Tribune. May 24, 2018. Retrieved May 26, 2018.
  31. ^ Campa-Najjar, Ammar. "About Ammar". Ammar Campa-Najjar for Congress. Retrieved June 27, 2018.
  32. ^ McPhate, Mike (June 26, 2017). "California Today: Young, Arab, Latino and Vying for Congress". The New York Times. Retrieved February 17, 2018.
  33. ^ McNamara, Brittney (May 29, 2017). "Why This Young Latinx-Arab American Is Running For Congress". Teen Vogue. Retrieved February 17, 2018.
  34. ^ a b Ali Younes (May 4, 2018). "Palestinian-Mexican American politician running for US Congress". Al Jazeera. Retrieved March 2, 2020.
  35. ^ Stewart, Joshua (February 2, 2018). "Young, first-time candidates lead in campaign finances". The San Diego Union-Tribune. Retrieved February 16, 2018.
  36. ^ Riotta, Chris (July 10, 2018). "Is Bernie Sanders' revolution finally taking hold in America?". The Independent. Retrieved July 11, 2018.
  37. ^ "50th district: Anyone but Duncan Hunter". The San Diego Union-Tribune (Editorial). May 25, 2018. Retrieved May 26, 2018.
  38. ^ Stone, Ken (March 3, 2020). "It'll be Darrell Issa vs. Ammar Campa-Najjar in Runoff to Replace CA50's Hunter". Times of San Diego. Retrieved August 3, 2020.
  39. ^ Jacobson, Louis (November 1, 2018). "Did CAIR, Muslim Brotherhood back a Democratic candidate?". PolitiFact. Retrieved September 6, 2019.
  40. ^ Clark, Charles T. (October 16, 2018). "Former Rep. Duncan Hunter goes to bat for his indicted son in bitter congressional re-election bid". The San Diego Union-Tribune. Retrieved September 6, 2019.
  41. ^ Tibon, Amir (February 20, 2018). "Grandson of Munich Massacre Terrorist Is Running for Congress – Sounding a Peaceful Tone on Israel". Haaretz. Retrieved July 17, 2018.
  42. ^ Stewart, Joshua (February 21, 2018). "Congressional candidate renounces grandfather's violent legacy, calls for Middle East peace". The San Diego Union-Tribune. Retrieved July 17, 2018.
  43. ^ Golshan, Tara (August 22, 2018). "The campaign fraud scandal around California Republican Duncan Hunter, explained". Vox. Retrieved August 22, 2018.
  44. ^ Grim, Ryan; Jilani, Zaid (August 22, 2018). "Ammar Campa-Najjar, a Working-Class Progressive, Gets a Boost from Indictment of Duncan Hunter". The Intercept. Retrieved September 6, 2019.
  45. ^ Kopp, Emily (November 15, 2019). "Ammar Campa-Najjar Does Not Blame Bigotry for His Defeat". Roll Call. Retrieved September 6, 2019.
  46. ^ Abcarian, Robin (February 12, 2019). "Column: Ammar Campa-Najjar is running again despite racist attacks in midterms". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved October 12, 2019.
  47. ^ White, Jeremy B. (August 29, 2019). "Issa weighs return to the House — through Duncan Hunter". Politico. Retrieved September 6, 2019.
  48. ^ Kopp, Emily (January 3, 2019). "Ammar Campa-Najjar will challenge indicted Duncan Hunter again in 2020". Roll Call. Retrieved September 6, 2019.
  49. ^ Ross, David (August 14, 2019). "Democratic candidate for congress Campa-Najjar: "When the other side goes low, I go local"". Valley Road Runner. Retrieved September 6, 2019.
  50. ^ Schatz, Bryan (February 8, 2019). "Ammar Campa-Najjar Is Ready for a Rematch Against Indicted Rep. Duncan Hunter". Mother Jones. Retrieved September 6, 2019.
  51. ^ "Campa-Najjar Tacks Right, Nearly Loses Progressive Support". Voice of San Diego. February 18, 2020. Retrieved March 7, 2020.
  52. ^ Grim, Ryan; Jilani, Zaid (August 22, 2018). "Ammar Campa-Najjar, a Working-Class Progressive, Gets a Boost From Indictment of Duncan Hunter". The Intercept. Retrieved March 7, 2020.
  53. ^ Campa, Ammar. "The Activated Podcast on Twitter". I'm going to change to independent. I don't see myself in either party frankly.
  54. ^ "Local Democrats Angered By 50th District Candidate Campa-Najjar's Interview With Far-Right Group". KPBS Public Media. October 11, 2020. Retrieved August 12, 2024.
  55. ^ "Super Tuesday in San Diego: Campa-Najjar and Issa will face off for California's 50th Congressional race in November". CBS News 8. March 4, 2020. Retrieved March 4, 2020.
  56. ^ Clark, Charles; Schroeder; Lauren (September 9, 2020). "50th District race is 'anyone's guess' as Issa, Campa-Najjar in statistical dead heat in new poll". San Diego Union-Tribune. Archived from the original on September 10, 2020. Retrieved September 17, 2020.
  57. ^ Clark, Charles (October 25, 2020). "Former congressman Darryl Issa has given or loaned at least $7.7 million to his campaign in a tight contest with Ammar Campa-Najjar". San Diego Union-Tribune.
  58. ^ "Endorsement: Ammar Campa-Najjar is the clear choice in the 50th Congressional District". SDUT Editorial Board. San Diego Union-Tribune. October 7, 2020. Retrieved October 25, 2020.
  59. ^ Watson, Julie (April 21, 2021). "California Republican Darrell Issa headed back to Congress". Associated Press.
  60. ^ "U.S. House of Representatives Results of All Districts". California Secretary of State. Retrieved February 1, 2021.
  61. ^ "Home". www.campacampaign.com. Retrieved February 11, 2022.
  62. ^ "Election Night Results".
  63. ^ "McCann certified as Chula Vista's next mayor, dead candidate wins city attorney race". San Diego Union-Tribune. December 9, 2022. Retrieved September 4, 2023.
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