Sameena Mustafa has had a successful career as a real estate broker working     with nonprofits and small businesses in addition to a rising profile in the city’s comedy     scene. In 2015 she cofounded              Simmer Brown, a South Asian comedy collective. But the 2016 election made her take a     hard look at the local political arena and decide to get involved. Now     Mustafa, 47, is one of three Democratic primary challengers to incumbent     Fifth District U.S. representative Mike Quigley, who’s held that office for     nearly a decade. Mustafa believes he’s out of touch with the progressive     values that she sees to be increasingly animating the district. If she     wins, Mustafa would be the first Muslim woman in Congress and the first     Indian-American woman to represent Illinois.



    I can’t find any of your stand-up on YouTube. Is there a reason for that? 



    You’ve been living in the district for 30 years. When did you first learn     anything about your congressman? And can you describe your relationship     with the congressman over the years? 



                     It’s in how I’ve organized my campaign, it’s in how I’ve talked about the     issues. . . . I gotta tell you, we’ve talked to thousands of voters, and this     is a progressive district. So when you approach them, they assume you’re     agreeing on some baseline principles. Are you pro-choice? Are you pro-LGBT?     Do you support the Dreamers, immigration reform? Are you going to be     supporting health care access for all? This is something I’ve found is     resonating with voters.


     You’ve talked about how problematic gerrymandering is, how it creates this     strange monoculture of an electorate in one particular district. Is there     anything you’ve been either pleasantly or unpleasantly surprised by as     you’ve been campaigning around the absurd contours of the Fifth District? 
                     I know this district, this is the district I grew up in, my parents have     lived here for over 40 years, and I felt confident in my knowledge of what     the values were that I held and that were shared by the voters. And one     thing that I keep getting positive reinforcement on is how much, despite     the gerrymandering, how much the voters and the district value diversity     and believe in inclusion and view it as one of our strengths. I’m getting     phone calls, e-mails, and messages from people who are saying, “We want to     help you, we support you, we share your values and we want to see a leader     like you represent us.” It’s humbling, and it’s an honor. This has been an     incredible opportunity to connect with people on values and policies that     they care about.