Pia Dandiya, 39, has thrown her hat into the ring for Florida’s freshly redrawn 22nd Congressional District in the November 3, 2026 midterm elections. The seat stretches from Palm Beach to Collier, and the redistricting has left it without an incumbent, turning the race into a true open‑seat showdown. She will go up against Republican Casey Askar, a Naples businessman and Marine veteran who won the GOP nomination.
Dandiya grew up in Palm Beach County and credits her Indian‑American heritage and her career in education for shaping her political ambitions. She served as a high‑school teacher, then as founding principal of Democracy Prep Endurance High School in Harlem, and later as a White House Fellow on the Domestic Policy Council from 2020 to 2021. In 2022, she joined Apple to work on public‑sector initiatives before leaving the tech giant in June 2025.
Her platform centers on making the American Dream more attainable by slashing living costs and curbing the influence of wealthy donors. "I’m running for Congress because I want to fight for a future that is worthy of my students, and now also my three‑year‑old son," she told CBS Miami’s Facing South Florida. She calls herself a "high‑school principal who knows how to say no to nonsense," and vows to bring that mindset to Washington.
Dandiya’s campaign will kick off with a series of town‑halls across the district, and she has already secured endorsements from several local education groups. The August 28, 2026 primary will decide whether she makes it to the November 3 general election, where voters will weigh her record against Askar’s promises of fiscal conservatism. Supporters say the race could signal a shift toward more progressive voices in Florida’s new congressional map.