Charlene Nijmeh

Charlene Nijmeh (Democratic Party) ran for election to the U.S. House to represent California's 18th Congressional District. She lost in the primary on March 5, 2024.

Nijmeh completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2023. Click here to read the survey answers.

Biography

Charlene Nijmeh was born in San Jose, California. Her career experience includes working as a businesswoman, environmentalist, and nonprofit CEO. Nijmeh is the chairwoman of the Muwekma Ohlone Tribe of the San Francisco Bay area.^[1]

Elections

2024

California's 18th Congressional District election, 2024 (March 5 top-two primary)

General election

General election for U.S. House California District 18

Incumbent Zoe Lofgren defeated Peter Hernandez in the general election for U.S. House California District 18 on November 5, 2024.

	Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Zoe Lofgren (D)	64.6	147,674
	Peter Hernandez (R)	35.4	80,832

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 228,506
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Nonpartisan primary election

Nonpartisan primary for U.S. House California District 18

Incumbent Zoe Lofgren and Peter Hernandez defeated Charlene Nijmeh, Lawrence Milan, and Luele Kifle in the primary for U.S. House California District 18 on March 5, 2024.

	Candidate	%	Votes
✔	Zoe Lofgren (D)	51.2	49,370
✔	Peter Hernandez (R)	32.8	31,665
	Charlene Nijmeh (D)	11.0	10,631
	Lawrence Milan (D)	2.8	2,714
	Luele Kifle (D)	2.1	2,034

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 96,414
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

Fepbrina Keivaulqe Autiameineire (No party preference)

Endorsements

Ballotpedia did not identify endorsements for Nijmeh in this election.

Campaign themes

2024

Video for Ballotpedia

Video submitted to Ballotpedia Released November 22, 2023

Ballotpedia survey responses

Charlene Nijmeh completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2023. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Nijmeh's responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.

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Who are you? Tell us about yourself.

As Chairwoman of the Muwekma Ohlone Tribe of the San Francisco Bay Area, I work with governments at all levels on quality-of-life issues for my people. Public service and duty to our communities is something I learned from my mother and our Tribal elders.

I am also a business owner and environmentalist. Fifteen years ago, I founded a California company that has partnerships in Mexico, Guatemala, El Salvador, and Honduras. We employ 6,000 people and divert 60 million pounds of clothing from landfills yearly.

I am also the CEO of a California non-profit that teaches students and communities about sustainable practices and recycling education.

Most importantly, I am a proud mother of Five, but I worry about my children’s futures as quality of life continues to dip for us while corporate giants become richer.

Because of my work, I understand what's wrong with politics and I know how to fix it.

Every crisis in our communities (unaffordable housing, homelessness, crime, gentrification, etc.) stems from the fact our politicians do not work for us and have no incentive to listen.

I support term limits, age limits, and donation limits because I believe in putting people before politics.

Please list below 3 key messages of your campaign. What are the main points you want voters to remember about your goals for your time in office?

We need Term Limits , Age Limits, and Donation limits in order to eliminate corruption from politics.
Affordable Housing , inflation control, and living wage jobs are human rights.
No more Forever Wars. Lets fight the wars at home - The war on homelessness, crime, and unaffordable living.

What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?

I am passionate about sustainability and environmental policy. I am passionate about human rights and human dignity which includes living wage jobs, affordable living, help for the unhoused, and sensible immigration policy.

Who do you look up to? Whose example would you like to follow, and why?

My mother and my tribal elders who taught me the meaning of public service

Is there a book, essay, film, or something else you would recommend to someone who wants to understand your political philosophy?

(Robert Kennedy) quotes-

“the essence of responsibility is to put the public good ahead of personal gain”

“The purpose of life is to contribute in some way to making things better.”

“Every time we turn our heads the other way when we see the law flouted, when we tolerate what we know to be wrong, when we close our eyes and ears to the corrupt because we are too busy or too frightened, when we fail to speak up and speak out, we strike a blow against freedom and decency and justice.”

What characteristics or principles are most important for an elected official?

Honesty, Integrity, Humanity and Public Service.

What qualities do you possess that you believe would make you a successful officeholder?

As Chairwoman of the Muwekma Ohlone Tribe of the San Francisco Bay Area, I work with governments at all levels on quality-of-life issues for my people. Public service and duty to our communities is something I learned from my mother and our Tribal elders.

I am also a business owner and environmentalist. Fifteen years ago, I founded a California company that has partnerships in Mexico, Guatemala, El Salvador, and Honduras. We employ 6,000 people and divert 60 million pounds of clothing from landfills yearly.

I am also the CEO of a California non-profit that teaches students and communities about sustainable practices and recycling education.

Most importantly, I am a proud mother of Five, but I worry about my children’s futures as quality of life continues to dip for us while corporate giants become richer.

Because of my work, I understand what's wrong with politics and I know how to fix it.

Every crisis in our communities (unaffordable housing, homelessness, crime, gentrification, etc.) stems from the fact our politicians do not work for us and have no incentive to listen.

What do you believe are the core responsibilities for someone elected to this office?

Serving their constituents is the one responsibility they must never lose sight of

Listening and hearing the issues that their constituents struggle with and fighting for solutions to those issues.

What legacy would you like to leave?

That I served my community and fought for the rights of all people to live in prosperity in their communities. That I fought to make affordable housing and living wages a human right. That I fought to fix our immigration system and fought to help the unhoused find help to get off the streets and live in dignity.

What is the first historical event that happened in your lifetime that you remember? How old were you at the time?

I remember when my mother in an act of political resistance protected my ancestors remains from being desecrated and because of that she went to jail and lost our home. This was a historic event for my people because it started our now 43 year struggle to reaffirm our status as a federally recognized tribe.

What was your very first job? How long did you have it?

I worked for my tribe when i was eight years old. I was taught to care for and repatriate our ancestral remains. I have served my community my entire life and continue to serve my tribe but now as Chairwoman . I also have founded a textile recycling operation and chair two non-profits.

What is your favorite book? Why?

Palo Alto by Malcom Harris. It tells the truth about our history instead of glamorizing our past and present.

If you could be any fictional character, who would you want to be?

I prefer to stay in realty because we have a lot of serious work ahead of us

What was the last song that got stuck in your head?

None

What is something that has been a struggle in your life?

I have been Fighting the federal government for my people's right to exist as a sovereign nation. This struggle has opened my eyes to the corruption in politics and has encouraged me to run for Congress to represent not only my people but all marginalized and unheard people who struggle against special interest influence over our politicians

What qualities does the U.S. House of Representatives possess that makes it unique as an institution?

The House of Representatives represents more proportionally the population of the United States ( as opposed to the senate where each state has 2 senators regardless of the number of residents in each state) and therefore it is more closely representative of the will of the people. However it is critical to apply safeguards to this representative institution by implementing term limits, age limits and donation limits. This would ensure fairness and equality in representing the will of the people.

Do you believe that it's beneficial for representatives to have previous experience in government or politics?

I believe it can be beneficial in some regards. In my experience as Tribal chairwoman, I interact with all levels of government on many issues and that has shown me the deficiencies in government and the corruption in politics that are evident but are fixable. My experience in business has taught me the management of resources is something the government lacks in proficiency. And therefore, I would rely on my experience in both the fields of business and politics to bring people together on common sense solutions for the benefit of our communities.

What do you perceive to be the United States’ greatest challenges as a nation over the next decade?

We need to come together as a nation and solve our domestic problems which our incumbent politicians have been ignoring for decades. We need to stop spending our money on forever wars that enrich corporate giants while ignoring the needs of our communities. We spend trillions of dollars on wars that do not make us more secure and only serve to make us more hated in the world. The money could and should be better spent on our many domestic issues like affordable housing, solving our out of control homeless crisis, improving quality of life issues like better and more accessible mass transit, better and more affordable healthcare , promoting living wage salaries for our teachers, nurses, and hourly wage earners, better schools, and control of the inflation that eats away at our savings and our quality of life.

Do you believe that two years is the right term length for representatives?

Yes.

What are your thoughts on term limits?

I wholeheartedly support term limits.

Is there a particular representative, past or present, whom you want to model yourself after?

No one comes to mind

Both sitting representatives and candidates for office hear many personal stories from the residents of their district. Is there a story that you’ve heard that you found particularly touching, memorable, or impactful?

I hear these stories all the time and they all touch me . These are not new stories. I have been hearing these stories for years. The stories of my neighbors, friends and family who are all living paycheck to paycheck and struggling to survive. The stories of my adult children and their peers who can't afford to buy a home and who can barely afford to rent despite working two jobs. The stories have been pessimistic and void of hope for a better future. This lack of hope is what breaks my heart. The fact that most people feel resigned to the way things are -Resigned to the fact that nothing can be done or nothing will be done to bring relief to their situation breaks my heart.

Tell us your favorite joke.

Our current state of affairs.

Do you believe that compromise is necessary or desirable for policymaking?

You must acknowledge that there are moments when it is acceptable to Compromise and there are moments when it is not. We must never compromise our values, morals, or beliefs. However, we also must acknowledge that we all must respect each other as fellow citizens with equal rights to pursue our dreams and aspirations and live together in peace dignity and respect regardless of religion, race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, or political beliefs.

I am the chairwoman of a sovereign American Indian tribe and In our tribe, we have diverse political views. Our members have divergent religious beliefs – from the most devout clergy who follow in the traditions of the Mission, to faith keepers struggling to keep our ceremonies alive, and young people who look to walk the Red Road.

We have tribal members of every walk of life, profession, and political persuasion. We have college educated professionals, we have mechanics and contractors, we have business owners, and we have members who are unemployed or incarcerated.

We have members who are well off financially and we have members who are struggling financially.

We don’t agree on all issues but one thing we do agree on is that we are all part of the same community that has shared dreams and aspirations for itself. So we respect each other’s opinions, and we listen to each other and work to understand each other’s perspectives deeply and honestly.

As a tribal leader, it’s my job to represent every single one of us – not just the folks who are well off or the folks who can vote.

When I'm elected to Congress, I will represent all of us by bringing us all together to find common ground for our mutual benefit.

The Constitution says that all bills for raising revenue must originate in the House. What role would this power play in your priorities if elected?

Accountability and resource management is critical to get us back on track. Investing in ourselves before we invest in other countries.

How should the U.S. House use its investigative powers?

To ensure there is no improper special interest influence over our elected officials. To ensure corruption is exposed and the American people be told the truth.

What organizations or individuals have endorsed your campaign?

The Muwekma Ohlone Tribal Council

Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.

Campaign website

Nijmeh’s campaign website stated the following:

“

Housing Affordability
The only way to reduce housing prices is to increase the supply of homes. Our public policy posture should be focused on bringing new units into the marketplace at every price point, including the provision of deeply-affordable units for the working-poor segments of our population, multi-bedroom housing that is affordable for working families, and all styles of workforce housing.

The Department of Housing and Urban Development must reinvent its approach to housing and urban development -- and that will take legislation that reshapes our national housing policy. I will call for new legislation: the Housing Access and Affordability Act of 2025 -- which will make it easier for affordable housing developers and non-profit organizations to access federal financing to construct new units on underutilized urban land.

Homelessness
To address the San Francisco Bay Area's uniquely large population of unhoused people, our congressional delegation must work together to fight for federal funds that provide for the transitional housing, drug treatment facilities, and work programs that are needed to get people off the streets and onto a long-term path of personal growth and independent living.

World Class Mass Transit
The San Francisco Bay Area -- including San Jose and the South Bay -- deserves a world-class mass transit system that serves the day-to-day needs of our residents and our workforce. It's time to build the mass transit system that we need to accommodate Silicon Valley's next generation of economic growth. It will require an expansive deployment of new light rail and an extension of the Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) system to San Jose and Silicon Valley. I will fight for federal funds to begin building the infrastructure that will evolve our region into a more livable reality for working people.

We all deserve safe streets
All Californians -- and all Americans -- deserve safe streets and healthy neighborhoods. The mental health crisis that is taking place on our streets is undeniable. America can do better in providing troubled individuals the help that they need to redirect the trajectory of their lives. Access to better support services is just the beginning. These challenges demand values education programs and anti-addiction curriculum in our schools. Coupled with more holistic reentry programs for formerly incarcerated persons, we can make our streets safe everywhere -- and we can do so compassionately.

An Era of Energy Innovation
The Bay Area's vibrant tech industry has a unique role to play in transforming North America's energy mix. Our unparalleled ability to innovate to solve the challenge of resource constraints and the costs of power generation is precisely what the Nation needs to remain competitive across every facet of our economy. Robust innovation is the pathway towards a truly diverse renewable energy mix that is affordable to ratepayers and void of the environmental impacts that impose unseen costs on the next generation.

Better Parks and Public Spaces
Parks and public spaces are a democratizing force in any society. The sprawling and poorly planned development that has engulfed the South Bay over the last three decades has undermined our region's access to open space, neighborhood parks, recreational amenities, and the town square. It's a profound loss and impacts the quality of life of our residents. I am committed to making our community the most enjoyable and livable place in America -- and I fight for the federal funds that will make your life better. I will also fight to curb the poorly planned sprawl that continues to threaten our open spaces and natural environments.

Protecting children on the internet
For decades, Congress has failed to protect our children on the internet. I will demand that Hollywood and Silicon Valley put our priorities -- protecting our children -- before their priorities. The Big Tech companies have ignored the psychological harms that their social media platforms have on young users. New consumer protections are needed to keep these platforms out of the hands of children -- like were once legislated to reign in the abusive practices of the tobacco industry when they targeted minors.

We will require paywalls to access pornography so that minors can't have easy and free access to it. We will demand that tech companies do more to prevent human trafficking and use artificial intelligence to identify sex trafficking in our midst. For too long, Silicon Valley has turned a blind eye to the sex trade that is enabled with their platforms and technologies.

A functional immigration system
Our immigration system doesn't work. It's broken, backwards, and irrational -- and it's causing havoc on our borders. We need to make it easier for people to migrate here lawfully, safely, and transparently. That requires comprehensive immigration reform that makes the American dream a possibility for all.^[2]

”

—Charlene Nijmeh's campaign website (2024)^[3]

Campaign finance summary

Note: The finance data shown here comes from the disclosures required of candidates and parties. Depending on the election or state, this may represent only a portion of all the funds spent on their behalf. Satellite spending groups may or may not have expended funds related to the candidate or politician on whose page you are reading this disclaimer. Campaign finance data from elections may be incomplete. For elections to federal offices, complete data can be found at the FEC website. Click here for more on federal campaign finance law and here for more on state campaign finance law.

Charlene Nijmeh campaign contribution history
Year	Office	Status	Contributions	Expenditures
2024*	U.S. House California District 18	Lost primary	$203,732	$203,649
Grand total			$203,732	$203,649
Sources: OpenSecrets, Federal Elections Commission *This product uses the openFEC API but is not endorsed or certified by the Federal Election Commission (FEC).
* Data from this year may not be complete

External links

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Candidate

U.S. House California District 18

Personal

Footnotes

↑ Information submitted to Ballotpedia through the Candidate Connection survey on December 13, 2023
↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
↑ Charlene for Congress, “Platform,” accessed February 12, 2024

[show]

California's current delegation to the United States Congress

Senators

Alex Padilla (D)

Adam Schiff (D)

Representatives

District 1

Doug LaMalfa (R)

District 2

Jared Huffman (D)

District 3

Kevin Kiley (R)

District 4

Mike Thompson (D)

District 5

Tom McClintock (R)

District 6

Ami Bera (D)

District 7

Doris Matsui (D)

District 8

John Garamendi (D)

District 9

Josh Harder (D)

District 10

Mark DeSaulnier (D)

District 11

Nancy Pelosi (D)

District 12

Lateefah Simon (D)

District 13

Adam Gray (D)

District 14

Eric Swalwell (D)

District 15

Kevin Mullin (D)

District 16

Sam Liccardo (D)

District 17

Ro Khanna (D)

District 18

Zoe Lofgren (D)

District 19

Jimmy Panetta (D)

District 20

Vince Fong (R)

District 21

Jim Costa (D)

District 22

David Valadao (R)

District 23

Jay Obernolte (R)

District 24

Salud Carbajal (D)

District 25

Raul Ruiz (D)

District 26

Julia Brownley (D)

District 27

George Whitesides (D)

District 28

Judy Chu (D)

District 29

Luz Rivas (D)

District 30

Laura Friedman (D)

District 31

Gil Cisneros (D)

District 32

Brad Sherman (D)

District 33

Pete Aguilar (D)

District 34

Jimmy Gomez (D)

District 35

Norma Torres (D)

District 36

Ted Lieu (D)

District 37

Sydney Kamlager-Dove (D)

District 38

Linda Sánchez (D)

District 39

Mark Takano (D)

District 40

Young Kim (R)

District 41

Ken Calvert (R)

District 42

Robert Garcia (D)

District 43

Maxine Waters (D)

District 44

Nanette Barragán (D)

District 45

Derek Tran (D)

District 46

Lou Correa (D)

District 47

Dave Min (D)

District 48

Darrell Issa (R)

District 49

Mike Levin (D)

District 50

Scott Peters (D)

District 51

Sara Jacobs (D)

District 52

Juan Vargas (D)

Democratic Party (45)

Republican Party (9)

[1] Information submitted to Ballotpedia through the Candidate Connection survey on December 13, 2023

[quotedisclaimer-2] Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.

[3] Charlene for Congress, “Platform,” accessed February 12, 2024

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[2]

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Charlene Nijmeh

Contents

Biography

Elections

2024

General election

General election for U.S. House California District 18

Nonpartisan primary election

Nonpartisan primary for U.S. House California District 18

Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

Endorsements

Campaign themes

2024

Video for Ballotpedia

Ballotpedia survey responses

Campaign website

Campaign finance summary

See also

External links

Footnotes

Information about voting

2025 Elections

2026 Elections

2024 Election analysis

Trending

Public Policy

Information for candidates

Get Engaged

Services

Additional analysis

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