Former Democratic Party member of the Arizona House of Representatives Dr. Amish Shah, an emergency-room physician, recently announced his run for the US Congress from Arizona’s First Congressional District, a pick-up opportunity for the Democratic Party.
This will be his second attempt to get elected to Capitol Hill after losing in 2024, by a relatively slim margin (48.1 percent) to the victor and incumbent Republican David Schweikert (51.9 percent). There are four other Democrats seeking the District 1 seat, which will be decided in the November 3, 2026 general elections.
As of March 31, 2025, Shah’s campaign fortunes are low, and he has a tough fight ahead. Schweikert’s campaign had $694,863 cash on hand, whereas Shah had $71,555. One of the other Democratic candidates, Marlene Galan-Woods, also running for District 1, had an impressive $303, 278, all figures listed by the Federal Elections Commission and given on Ballotpedia.com.
According to the Cook Political Report, and Larry J. Sabato’s Crystal Ball, the District 1 seat is a “Toss-up” but Inside Elections with Nathan L. Gonzales rates it as a “Tilt Republican.”
Shah has launched his campaign pointing to his accomplishments while he was in the State House, to which he won three elections- in 2018, 2020, and 2022.
As of May 14, 2025, Shah lists some 26 endorsements from current and former Arizona elected officials, including former State House Minority Leader Lupe Contreras; State House Assistant Minority Leader Nancy Gutierrez. Shah was also recently endorsed by the Indian American Impact Fund.
In his campaign bio @amishforarizona.com, Dr. Shah details how in his five years at the State Legislature, he focused on increasing teacher pay, supporting small businesses, and improving public health and safety.
He had more bills signed into law than any Arizona Democrat in the last decade, the website notes.
Dr. Shah platform says he is committed to lowering healthcare costs and standing up to Big Pharma to end the price gouging of essential medications like insulin.
The platform goes on to say Dr. Shah believes that politicians should stay out of personal medical decisions, and that he will work “tirelessly” to ensure that women have the freedom to make choices about their own bodies.
Shah, who has already represented key parts of Arizona’s First Congressional District in Maricopa County as a State Representative, is credited with having a track record of being an independent voice working across party lines, according to his campaign bio.
If elected to the US Congress, Shah says, he will “work to lower costs for hardworking Arizonans, protect Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid, fight for abortion rights, and keep families safe.”
Dr. Shah enjoys playing basketball, flying small airplanes, and embarking on adventurous travel, according to the campaign site. He is fluent in Gujarati and speaks conversational Spanish. He has three adopted cats named Hillary, Miss Meowerson, and Cousin Oliver.
His brief biography on Ballotpedia, says he was born in Chicago, Illinois, and earned his Bachelors degree in economics from Northwestern University in 19197. He went on to get a medical degree from the same university in 2001. He also has a Masters in Public Health (MPH) from Berkeley in 2003.
He worked at the Mayo Clinic as well as at Dignity Health and IASIS Healthcare as an attending physician. He was the Chief Medical Officer of Urgent Consult. He also served as an airway management physician with the New York Jets.
During his tenure in the State House, Dr. Shah sponsored bills that dealt with Tuition, Family, Posttraumatic Stress, as well as the Abortion Ban repeal, and other medical matters such as licensure, malpractice, veterinarian malpractice, and drinking water pollutants.
Shah boasts over a dozen awards for his service at the Arizona House of Representatives, including the 2022 Women’s Health Champion and Legislator of the Year. Other notable awards include the Jacob K. Javits Public Service Award in May 2024, at the American Psychiatric Association awards ceremony, for mental health interventions; and the Pamela P. Bensen Trailblazer Award in September 2023, for emergency medicine.
