A refugee from Afghanistan, 27-year-old, Fatima Payman, has become the first hijab-wearing woman to win a Senate seat in Western Australia.
Fatima Payman won Western Australia’s sixth and final Senate seat, becoming the first Afghan Australian and the first hijab-wearing Muslim woman in parliament.
With Fatima winning the last seat, the Labor Party won 26 seats, compared to 32 seats for the Liberal Party, and 12 seats for the Green Party.
At 27, she is the third youngest Senator in history.
Payman thanked her supporters after the election commission announced her victory.
“WE WON!!! I’m proud to announce that I’ve officially been elected as a Senator for Western Australia,” she posted on Facebook.
“Thank you everyone for your love and support! We did it!” she added.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and his party leaders congratulated Payman on her victory.
“Congratulations Senator Payman,” the premier tweeted.
The Afghan embassy in Australia said that it was pleased to hear the news, particularly on World Refugee Day.
“On this #WorldRefugeeDay we are pleased to hear that Ms Fatima Payman, an Afghan Refugee, now an Australian citizen, has made her path towards the Senate of the @Aust_Parliament. Many congratulations, Senator Fatima Payman!”
She was just five years old when she fled Afghanistan with her family, seeking refuge from the Taliban who had targeted the family because her grandfather was a member of the Afghan parliament.
From Pakistan, her father, Abdul Wakil Payman, left by boat to come to Australia, “seeking a better life for his children”.
Three years later, Payman, her mother and her siblings joined him in Perth, where he worked three jobs – as a kitchen hand, a security guard and a taxi driver. Her mother ran a business providing driving lessons.
Impacted by her parents’ struggles, Payman became an AFL organizer, and after losing her father to cancer in 2018, she decided she wanted to represent hard-working Australians like him who struggled to make ends meet.
Payman says she is passionate about breaking down barriers and stereotypes toward women, youth, and culturally diverse communities.
