Tarrant County elected one of Texas’ first Muslim and first South Asian state legislators
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After Tuesday’s election, a former Euless councilman will become Texas’ first South Asian state legislator and first Muslim state legislator, both of which are titles that he’ll share with another representative-elect.
Tarrant County voters in House District 92 have largely cast their ballots for Salman Bhojani, who by Wednesday morning had received 58% of reported votes. The district sits on the Dallas County line and includes portions of Bedford, Euless and Arlington. In Fort Bend County, Democrat Dr. Suleman Lalani received a similar portion of reported votes in his House District 76 race.
Until the two men won their races, it does not appear that Texans had ever elected a South Asian state legislator or a Muslim state legislator.
Lalani said in an emailed statement that he recognizes the historic nature of his election.
“But how I serve this multi-ethnic, minority majority community is more important,” Lalani said in the statement. “I want non-Muslims in Texas to know Muslims can serve and lead in all communities faithfully and effectively.”
Bhojani, a 42-year-old lawyer, said that he sees his constituency first and foremost as the residents of HD-92. But he also feels a responsibility to listen to the needs and concerns of the hundreds of thousands of Muslim Americans and South Asian Americans across Texas.
“I don’t take it as a burden,” Bhojani said. “I think that if we can provide them really meaningful representation, they will see through that.”
“My goal has always been to be a public servant.”
Bhojani added that he’s aiming to hire a diverse staff, so that he can “really make sure that we are listening to all our South Asian community members, Muslim community members, as well as our District 92.”
In yet another first, Bhojani will be also be the first person of color to hold the HD-92 seat.
His win marks a flip of the HD-92 seat from Republican to Democrat. While the seat had been Republican, last year’s redistricting left it leaning Democrat.
Bhojani, who emigrated from Pakistan to Texas as a teenager, became became the first Muslim American to hold an elected position in Euless when he won a city council seat in 2018.
He said he feels that he has lived the American Dream, starting by working for minimum wages and eventually graduating from law school and starting his own firm.
“Most of my district is sort of blue collar,” Bhojani said. “I want to bring that perspective that I have ... to Austin to make sure that we are fighting for those hardworking Texans that may not have that same opportunity that I received when I came to the country, and how do we expand that opportunity to them as well.”
At the state level, Bhojani will also be one of few Democrats elected from the Tarrant County area. He is one of only two Democrat winners in Tarrant County’s state House and Senate races, alongside incumbent Rep. Nicole Collier in House District 95.
He said he’s already reaching out to other legislators, instead of waiting until he’s sworn into office. Bhojani said his message has been that he’s “a hard-worker and not a partisan person.”
“That’s the kind of bipartisanship I want to create,” Bhojani said.
The 2022 election results are not yet final. Once the results are finalized, the newly elected and reelected legislators will take office in January 2023. State representatives serve two-year terms.
This story was originally published November 10, 2022 at 7:00 AM.
