Raaheela Ahmed Wins Primary for Maryland Board of Education

Source: India West

Indian American Muslim Raaheela Ahmed has advanced to the general election for the Prince George’s County, Maryland, Board of Education 5^th district seat.

The 2015 graduate of the University of Maryland at College Park, where she earned a double degree in economics and finance, was the top vote-getter in the April 26 primary.

Needing to finish in the top two among the four candidates, Ahmed received 9,624 votes – or 36 percent – to lead the way. In the November general election, she’ll try to beat out Cheryl Landis, who was the primary runner-up with 8,072 votes, or 30.5 percent.

Incumbent Jeana Jacobs finished third place in the voting with just more than 6,000 votes. Robert Johnson earned just 10 percent of the vote, coming in last in the primary.

Should she maintain the momentum and earn the board seat, Ahmed would become the youngest Indian American chosen to the post in the state’s history.

In addition to her campaign for the top education post, Ahmed is an advisory associate of the global public sector at Grant Thornton LLP, a court appointed special advocate in Prince George’s County, and a henna artist at Amtul’s Henna Body Art. She also previously served a one-year term as Gov. Martin O’Malley’s student representative on the University System of Maryland Board of Regents (I-W Aug. 20, 2014 http://bit.ly/1kVQcEQ).

Ahmed is the daughter of Shukoor and Nabeela Ahmed of Bowie, Md.

Her father is a well-known entrepreneur and angel investor originally from Hyderabad, India. He is the founder and CEO of Bowie-based V-Empower Inc., and of several Web sites that enable voter and candidate organizing in the U.S. and India. Her mother is a pharmacist for more than 20 years.

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