The Iranian American Political Action Committee (IAPAC) is the connected PAC of the Public Affairs Alliance of Iranian Americans (PAAIA), and plays an integral role in the “Influence Building” mission of PAAIA. IAPAC contributes to candidates running for public office, regardless of their party affiliation, who are attuned to the concerns of the Iranian American community. Political Action Committees are an important part of the American political process. As a critical tool in PAAIA’s advocacy efforts, IAPAC contributions are a means of access to discuss policy positions and/or educate our elected officials, assuring that our message is heard on Capitol Hill, and a way to encourage increased community participation.

Congressional candidates supported by IAPAC have an exceptional track record on the issues of importance to the Iranian American community, have articulated a readiness to engage and work with Iranian Americans, or are in a position to have influence over the legislative issues of concern to the community. Iranian American candidates supported by IAPAC have demonstrated their commitment to public service, are running viable campaigns, and embrace their heritage.

2018 Candidates
Jeff Flake U.S. Senate (R-AZ)	Kirsten Gillibrand U.S. Senate (D-NY)	Tim Kaine U.S. Senate (D-VA)	Chris Murphy U.S. Senate (D-CT)
Rand Paul                   U.S. Senate           (R-KY)	Ben Sasse                        U.S. Senate                (D-NE)	Democratic    Senatorial  Campaign Committee    (DSCC)	Andre Carson                U.S. House           of Representatives             (D-7th/IN)
Gerald Connolly               U.S. House of                  Representatives        (D-11th/VA)	Shireen Ghorbani               Candidate                 U.S. House of           Representatives          (R-2nd/UT)	Kia Hamadanchy            Candidate                 U.S. House of            Representatives        (D-45th/CA)	Sheila Jackson Lee                 U.S. House of                    Representatives           (D-18th/TX)
Zoe Lofgren                 U.S. House of               Representatives         (D-19th/CA)	Carolyn Maloney                  U.S. House of                   Representatives                  (D-12th/NY)	Scott Peters               U.S. House of           Representatives           (D-52nd/CA)	Francis Rooney                       U.S. House of                       Representatives                    (R-19th/FL)
Ed Royce                      U.S. House of                  Representatives                (R-39th/CA)	Adam Schiff                  U.S. House of              Representatives     (D-28th/CA)	National Republican            Congressional                 Committee          (NRCC)	Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee  (DCCC)
Liliana Bakhtiari    Candidate Atlanta City   Council District Five	Anna Eskamani     Candidate Florida House Representative District 47	Amir Farokhi       Atlanta City Council Member District 2	Anna Kaplan    Candidate New York State Senator District 7
Zahra Karinshak     Candidate Georgia  State Senate District 48	Shabnam Lotfi             Candidate Wisconsin           State Assembly                  District  77	Melody Shekari   Candidate Tennessee State Representative District 28

2016 Candidates
Richard Blumenthal     U.S. Senate (D-CT)	Donna Edwards  Candidate U.S. Senate (D-4th/MD)	Jeff Flake              U.S. Senate (R-AZ)	Charles Schumer  U.S. Senate (D-NY)
Chris Van Hollen  Candidate U.S. Senate  (D-MD)	Anna Kaplan  Candidate U.S. House of Representatives  (D-3rd/NY))	Carolyn Maloney        U.S. House of    Representatives (D-14th/NY))	John Mica U.S. House of Representatives  (R-7h/FL))
Scott Peters             U.S. House of          Representatives         (D-52nd/CA))	Jamie Raskin        Candidate U.S. House of Representatives  (D-3rd/NY))	Greg Walden           U.S. House of   Representatives (D-2nd/OR))	Andre Carson      U.S. House of   Representatives (D-7th/IN))
Barbara Comstock    Candidate U.S. House of Representatives  (R-10th/VA))	Gerald Connolly U.S. House of Representatives  (D-11th/VA)	Randy Forbes U.S. House of Representatives  (R-4th/VA)	Michael M. Honda  U.S. House of Representatives  (D-17th/CA)
Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee  (DCCC)	National Republican Congressional Committee  (NRCC)	Cyrus Habib        Candidate Lieutenant Governor Washington State	Fred Ameri    Candidate Newport City Beach Council
Mani Farhidi          Los Gatos Union School Board	Shiva Farivar    Candidate Irvine City Council	Sabrina Setareh Kraus Candidate Civil Court Judge New York, NY	Marjan Philhour Candidate San Francisco Board of Supervisors
2014 Candidates
Jeff Flake  U.S. Senate  (R-AZ)	Al Franken  U.S. Senate (D-MN)	Ed Markey  U.S. Senate (D-MA)	Rand Paul U.S. Senate (R-KY)
Jeanne Shaheen  U.S. Senate  (D-NH)	Andre Carson U.S. House of Representatives(D-7th/IN)	Gerald Connolly U.S. House of Representatives  (D-11th/VA)	Donna Edwards U.S. House of Representatives  (D-4th/MD)
Randy Forbes U.S. House of Representatives  (R-4th/VA)	Virginia Foxx U.S. House of Representatives  (R-5th/NC)	Michael M. Honda  U.S. House of Representatives  (D-17th/CA)	Carolyn Maloney  U.S. House of Representatives  (D-14th/NY)
John Mica U.S. House of Representatives  (R-7h/FL))	Scott Peters U.S. House of Representatives  (D-52nd/CA))	Ed Royce  U.S. House of Representatives  (R-39th/CA))	Steve Scalise U.S. House of Representatives  (R-1st/LA))
Jackie Speier U.S. House of Representatives  (D-14th/CA))	Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee  (DCCC)	National Republican Congressional Committee  (NRCC)	Bobby Abtahai  Candidate Dallas City Council District 14
Eric Garcetti  Candidate Mayor of  Los Angeles, CA	Cyrus Habib Candidate Washington State Senate District 48	Amir Omar  Candidate Mayor Richardson, Texas	Darius Shahinfar  Candidate Albany City Treasurer
Richard Taleverdian-Jesswein Candidate Santa Monica-Malibu Board of Education	Sunny Zia Candidate Long Beach Community College Trustee
2012 Candidates
Susan Collins U.S. Senate (R-ME)	John Cornyn U.S. Senate (R-TX)	Robert Menendez U.S. Senate (D-NJ)	Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee (DSCC)
National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC)	Gerald E. Connolly  U.S. House of Representatives  (D-11th/VA)	Donna F. Edwards U.S. House of Representatives  (D-4th/MD)	Randy Forbes  U.S. House of Representative  (R-4th/VA)
Michael M. Honda  U.S. House of Representatives  (D-15th/CA)	Carolyn Maloney  U.S. House of Representatives  (D-14th/NY)	John Mica  U.S. House of Representatives  (R-7th/FL)	Milad Pooran  Candidate U.S. House of Representatives  (D-6th/MD)
Mike Rogers  U.S. House of Representatives  (R-8th/MI)	Peter Roskam  U.S. House of Representatives  (R-6th/IL)	Ed Royce  U.S. House of Representative  (R-40th/CA)	Jackie Speier  U.S. House of Representatives  (D-12th/CA)
Henry Waxman  U.S. House of Representatives  (D-33rd/CA)	Frank Wolf  U.S. House of Representatives  (R-10th/VA)	Democratic Congressional  Campaign Committee  (DCCC)	National Republican Congressional Committee  (NRCC)
Edesa Bitbadal  Candidate San Jose City Council (District 10)	Sharmin Bock  Candidate District Attorney San Francisco County California	Farrah Douglas  Candidate California State Assembly (R-76th)	Cyrus Habib  Candidate Washington House of Representatives  District 48, Position 2
Anna Kaplan  Councilmember Elect Candidate North Hempstead New York  (D-4th)	Sabrina Setareh Kraus  Candidate Civil Court Judge New York, NY	Ross Mirkarimi  Candidate Sheriff San Francisco County California	Amir Omar  Council Member, City of Richardson
2010 Candidates
Charlie Crist  Candidate U.S. Senate  (I-FL)	Susan Collins  U.S. Senate  (R-ME)	Charles Schumer  U.S. Senate  (D-NY)	Democratic Senatorial  Campaign Committee  (DSCC)
National Republican  Senatorial Committee  (NRSC)	Brian Bilbray  U.S. House of Representatives  (R-50th/CA)	Donna F. Edwards  U.S. House of Representatives  (D-4th/MD)	Randy Forbes  U.S. House of Representative  (R-4th/VA)
Michael M. Honda  U.S. House of Representative  (D-15th/CA)	Carolyn Maloney  U.S. House of Representatives  (D-14th/NY)	John Mica  U.S. House of Representatives  (R-7th/FL)	Patrick Murphy  U.S. House of Representatives  (D-8th/PA)
Henry Waxman  U.S. House of Representatives  (D-30th/CA)	Robert J. Wittman  U.S. House of Representatives  (R-1st/VA)	Frank Wolf  U.S. House of Representatives  (R-10th/VA)	Democratic Congressional  Campaign Committee  (DCCC)
National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC)	Mark Ameli  Candidate Superior  Court Judge  Los Angeles County  California	Bahareh Azizi  Candidate Atlanta City Council District 6	Farrah Douglas  Candidate Carlsbad City Council
Elle Falahat  Candidate  District Attorney  Contra Costa County  California	Shiva Farivar  Candidate Irvine  City Council	Amir Farokhi  Candidate Atlanta  City Council  Post 2 At Large	Shahram Hadian  Candidate Washington State House of Representatives  District 44, Position1
Amir Ladan  Candidate Seminole County Florida  Court Judge	David Vahedi  Candidate Los Angeles City Council - District 5
2008 Candidates
Norm Coleman  U.S. Senate (R-MN)	Susan Collins  U.S. Senate (R-ME)	John Kerry  U.S. Senate (D-MA)	Frank Lautenberg  U.S. Senate (D-NJ)
Gordon Smith  U.S. Senate  (R-OR)	Mark Warner  Candidate U.S. Senate (D-VA)	John Campbell  U.S. House of Representative  (R-48th/CA)	Tom Feeney  U.S. House of Representatives  (R-24th/FL)
Kirsten Gillibrand  U.S. House of Representatives  (D-20th/NY)	Michael M. Honda  U.S. House of Representative  (D-15th/CA)	John Mica  U.S. House of Representatives  (R-7th/FL)	Carolyn Maloney  U.S. House of Representatives  (D-14th/NY)
Patrick Murphy  U.S. House of Representatives  (D-8th/PA)	Darius Shahinfar  Candidate U.S. House of Representatives  (D-21/NY)	Loretta Sanchez  U.S. House of Representatives  (D-47th/CA)	Christopher Shays  U.S. House of Representatives  (R-4th/CT)
Niki Tsongas  U.S. House of Representative  (D-5th/MA)	Henry Waxman  U.S. House of Representatives  (D-30th/CA)	Susan Amini  Candidate King County Superior Court Judge	Jimmy Delshad  Mayor Beverly Hills, California
Farrah Douglas  Candidate Carlsbad  City Council	Ahsha Safai  Candidate San Francisco Board of Supervisors District 11
2006 Candidates
Hillary Clinton  U.S. Senate  (D-NY)	Chuck Hagel  U.S. Senate (R-NE)	Kay Bailey Hutchison  U.S. Senate (R-TX)	Edward M. Kennedy  U.S. Senate (D-MA)
Arlen Specter  U.S. Senate  (R-PA)	Jim Webb  Candidate U.S. Senate  (D-VA)	John Campbell  U.S. House of Representative (R-48th/CA)	Tom Feeney  U.S. House of Representatives  (R-24th/FL)
Michael M. Honda  U.S. House of Representative (D-15th/CA)	Carolyn Maloney  U.S. House of Representatives  (D-14th/NY)	Marty Meehan  U.S. House of Representatives  (D-5th/MA)	John Mica  U.S. House of Representatives  (R-7th/FL)
Amir Omar  Candidate U.S. House of Representatives  (R-30th/TX)	Nancy Pelosi  U.S. House of Representative (D-8th/CA)	Christopher Shays  U.S. House of Representatives  (R-4th/CT)	Henry Waxman  U.S. House of Representatives  (D-30th/CA)
Anthony Weiner  U.S. House of Representatives  (D-9th/NY)	Susan Etezadi  Candidate San Mateo County Superior Court Judge	Darab Ghaffary  Candidate Sunnyvale City Council	Sheila Hanson  Candidate Orange County Superior Court Judge
2004 Candidates
Orrin G. Hatch  U.S. Senate (R-UT)	Edward M. Kennedy  U.S. Senate (D-MA)	Carolyn Maloney  U.S. House of Representatives  (D-14 th /NY)	Charles Schumer  U.S. Senate (D-NY)
Marty Meehan  U.S. House of Representatives  (D-5th/MA)	Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee (DSCC)	National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC)	Goli Ameri  Candidate U.S. House of Representatives  (R-1st/OR)
Barbara Boxer  U.S. Senate (D-CA)	Thomas Daschle  U.S. Senate (D-SD)	Mel Martinez  Candidate U.S. Senate (R-FL)	Thomas Davis III  U.S. Congress  (R-11th/VA)
Christopher Shays  U.S. Congress  (R-4th/CT)	Ross Mirkarimi  San Francisco Board of Supervisors

Liliana Bakhtiari

Candidate Atlanta City Council District 5

Liliana Bakhtiari was born and raised in the heart of Atlanta. Her father, an Iranian immigrant, was a pharmacist and her mother was a dental hygienist who worked hard to put him through medical school. With such busy and driven parents, she learned from a young age how to pitch in and help, often taking care of her brother, who had asthma and needed to be looked after.

For several years, Bakhtiari served on the Board of Lost N Found Youth, an organization dedicated to getting homeless queer youth off of the streets. She has traveled throughout the Southeast volunteering in crisis relief, such as Louisiana flood relief. She has pushed for continued conversation on the intersectionality of the arts and politics through platforms like 9to5, Elevate, and Tanz Farm. Inheriting my father’s passion for preservation, she has also spent the last couple of years renovating the Rufus M. Rose House - the last Victorian home left on Peachtree, a street that holds extensive Atlanta history. 

The election, which will be held on November 7th, 2017, marks the first time Bakhtiari has ran for public office.

Background Information:

Occupation: Freelance Photographer and Videographer

Residence: Atlanta, GA

Education: Georgia State University

Marital Status: Single

Previous Occupation: Community Activist

Birthplace: Atlanta, Georgia