Safiya Said Khalid (born 1996) is a Somali-American politician who served as a member of the Lewiston, Maine City Council.

Early years and education

Khalid was born in Somalia. As a seven-year-old, Khalid fled the country with her mother and two younger brothers. Her family initially settled in New Jersey before moving to Lewiston, Maine. At fourteen years old, she became an American citizen. She attended

Lewiston Public Schools Lewiston Public Schools (LPS) is a school district headquartered in Lewiston, Maine Lewiston (; ; officially the City of Lewiston, Maine) is List of cities in Maine, the second largest city in Maine and the most central city in Androscoggin Cou ...

and graduated from Lewiston High School. Khalid went on to graduate from the University of Southern Maine, where she studied psychology. Khalid is currently a graduate student at

Northeastern University Northeastern University (NU) is a private university, private research university with its main campus in Boston. Established in 1898, the university offers undergraduate and graduate programs on its main campus as well as satellite campuses in ...

studying public policy.

Career

Khalid worked for

L.L.Bean L.L.Bean is an American privately-held retail company that was founded in 1912 by Leon Leonwood Bean. The company, headquartered in the place in which it was founded, in Freeport, Maine, specializes in clothing and outdoor recreation equipment. ...

making boots during high school and college. After graduating, she worked for the Maine Democratic Party as a field organizer in Lewiston. She later worked as a clerk for the Maine Legislature's Committee on Housing and Labor. She currently works as a case manager for the nonprofit Gateway Community Services in Maine.

Politics

In 2017, Khalid ran for the Lewiston School Committee. She lost to the incumbent by a wide margin. Shortly after the election, she was elected as vice chair of the Lewiston Democratic Party. In 2018, Khalid won a seat representing Androscoggin County on the Maine Democratic Party State Committee. She went on to be elected to the Maine Democratic Party Executive Committee. In 2019, Khalid ran for the Lewiston City Council. On November 5, 2019, Khalid won the election with nearly 70 percent of the vote. Khalid took office on January 6, 2020. She serves on the Lewiston Finance Committee, Lewiston Housing Committee, and the Community Development Block Grant Committee. Khalid served as vice chair of the Lewiston Democratic Party. She endorsed

Bernie Sanders Bernard Sanders (born September8, 1941) is an American politician who has served as the junior United States senator from Vermont since 2007. He was the U.S. representative for the state's at-large congressional district from 1991 to 2007 ...

during the

2020 Democratic Party presidential primaries Presidential primaries and caucuses were organized by the Democratic Party to select the 3,979 pledged delegates to the 2020 Democratic National Convention held on August 17–20 to determine the party's nominee for president in the 2020 Unit ...

and served as one of his Maine co-chairs. After Sanders dropped out of the race, she endorsed Joe Biden. In 2021, Khalid ran for chair of the Lewiston Democratic Party seeking to succeed outgoing Chair Kiernan Majerus-Collins. After facing hostility and racist comments at a party meeting, she withdrew from the race.

Election Results

References

1996 births American politicians of Somalian descent American Muslims Living people Somalian emigrants to the United States University of Southern Maine alumni Lewiston, Maine City Council members 21st-century African-American women politicians African-American people in Maine politics Women city councillors in Maine Lewiston High School (Maine) alumni 21st-century African-American politicians Somalian refugees {{Maine-politician-stub