Abdelnasser Rashid

Abdelnasser Rashid is an American politician serving as a member of the Illinois House of Representatives for the 21st district since 2023. A Democrat, Rashid defeated redistricted incumbent Michael J. Zalewski in the primary election. The district includes the Southwest Side and southwest suburbs.

Rashid is the first Palestinian-American to serve in the Illinois General Assembly and is its first Muslim member, along with Nabeela Syed.

Early life and education Rashid was born in Chicago, Illinois.

Career Rashid worked on Chuy García's 2015 mayoral campaign and on the Bernie Sanders 2016 presidential campaign. He also served as deputy chief of staff to Cook County Clerk David Orr for two years.

In 2018, Rashid unsuccessfully ran for Cook County Commission for the 17th district, narrowly losing to Republican incumbent Sean M. Morrison by 1.14% of the vote. In 2020, he unsuccessfully ran for Cook County Board of Review. Rashid was re-elected to the Illinois House of Representatives in 2024.

Rashid has passed more than ten laws and was appointed to co-chair Illinois' AI Task Force. He received the Illinois Environmental Council's 2025 Milestone Achievement Award for his bill HB2516, which phases out cancer-linked per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) from consumer products.

Electoral history