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Pia Dandiya shifts campaign to Florida’s open 22nd district
The move follows a sweeping redistricting overhaul in South Florida that has triggered a reshuffling of congressional campaigns ahead of the 2026 midterms.
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Malvika Choudhary - Sat, 23, May 2026
- 17:33 EDT
- 44
Pia Dandiya / LinkedIn
Democratic congressional candidate Pia Dandiya has shifted her campaign to Florida’s open 22nd Congressional District, ending her effort to challenge Republican U.S. Rep. Brian Mast in the neighboring 21st District.
The move came after Gov. Ron DeSantis approved a mid-decade congressional redistricting plan that significantly redrew district boundaries across South Florida.
Also Read: EMILY’s List backs Pia Dandiya in Florida congressional race
Dandiya announced her switch shortly after Democratic U.S. Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz said she would instead seek reelection in Florida’s 20th Congressional District under the new map.
Ready to bring the fight. And honored to be in the race! https://t.co/VwHCelmNOB
— Pia Dandiya (@PiaforCongress) May 22, 2026
“Ready to bring the fight. And honored to be in the race!” Dandiya wrote on social media after entering the contest.
Dandiya enters the race with the endorsement of Florida Democratic Party Chair Nikki Fried and a sizable fundraising advantage. Campaign finance figures show she ended March with $1.17 million cash on hand after emerging as the top Democratic fundraiser challenging Mast in the 21st District.
The newly configured 22nd Congressional District stretches nearly coast-to-coast across Florida, from Marco Island in Southwest Florida to Wellington in Broward County. The district shares part of its northern border with the 21st District, where Dandiya had originally launched her congressional bid against Mast.
According to Florida Politics, about 54.6 percent of voters within the district’s revised boundaries supported Donald Trump in the 2024 presidential election, while the area backed Joe Biden by more than 51 percent in 2020 under previous lines.
Dandiya, a first-generation American raised in Jupiter, previously worked as a teacher and school principal before entering politics. Her campaign has highlighted her background in education and public policy, including her work founding a high-performing high school in New York serving low-income students.
Her switch also reshapes the Democratic primary landscape in both districts. The 21st District race still includes Democrat James Martin, a U.S. Coast Guard Reserve lieutenant commander who had been engaged in an increasingly contentious primary contest with Dandiya.
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