Special Investigations

Press Freedom Defense Fund

Dem Candidate for Rep. Eric Swalwell’s Seat Donated to Far-Right Republicans — Including Laura Loomer

Rakhi Israni, whose House primary campaign stunned observers with an early fundraising haul, has ties to Hindu nationalist political groups.

A new Democratic candidate in California’s 14th Congressional District primary raised eyebrows when she announced she raised $2 million in the first two weeks of her campaign. Rakhi Israni threw her hat into the race for Rep. Eric Swalwell’s seat in the strongly Democratic leaning district just a few weeks ago and quickly brought in the big cash from donors whose identities are, for now, unknown.

The $2 million in donations aren’t the only eyebrow-raising political donations Israni has been involved in.

Public filings on her own personal political giving reveal years of support for far-right Republicans. The list of those who have received her cash include MAGA candidates, the Republican head of the evangelical Zionist group Christians United for Israel, anti-abortion candidates, and even far-right pundit Laura Loomer, according to disclosures reviewed by The Intercept.

“Let me be unequivocal: I oppose Trump’s attacks on our democracy, his efforts to overturn the 2020 election, his assault on reproductive freedom, and the division he has fueled in this country,” Israni said in a statement to The Intercept. “I reject MAGA politics.”

Israni, a first-time political candidate with a history of Hindu nationalism advocacy, is challenging a clutch of progressive Democrats: state Sen. Aisha Wahab; progressive Democratic strategist Matt Ortega; BART board president Melissa Hernandez; and immigration attorney Abrar Qadir. Swalwell, who is leaving the seat to run for governor of California, has not yet endorsed a candidate in the primary.

With Israni’s past political donations coming to light, Ortega questioned how she came to donate to far-right figures.

“There is no version of this story where Rakhi Israni giving money to Laura Loomer is acceptable. None.”

“There is no version of this story where Rakhi Israni giving money to Laura Loomer is acceptable. None.”

“Why did Rakhi Israni give money to Laura Loomer? Was it that Laura Loomer calls herself a ‘proud Islamophobe’? Or perhaps it was Laura Loomer calling Islam ‘a cancer on humanity’ that won her support?” Ortega said in a statement. “There is no version of this story where Rakhi Israni giving money to Laura Loomer is acceptable. None. It’s disqualifying.”

Wahab, for her part, suggested Israni might be out of step with voters in the deep-blue district.

“Our district wants and deserves a real Democrat — pro-choice, pro-democracy, and firmly against extremism — not someone bankrolling MAGA-extremists and far-right allies, pretending to be something they’re not,” Wahab said in a statement to The Intercept. “People will look closely at who funds a campaign, a candidate’s record, and whether their record matches their rhetoric.”

In her statement, Israni said, “Over the course of my professional career, I have engaged broadly and, at times, supported individuals across the political spectrum. Those contributions were not ideological endorsements of every position a candidate has taken, nor do they reflect support for extreme rhetoric or divisive statements.”

Donating to the Far Right

Israni’s personal political donation history tracks with support for Hindu........

© The Intercept