Democratic candidates Daniel Biss and Kat Abughazaleh appeared to cozy up to each other and enjoy drinks at a historic Chicago cocktail bar, less than a month before they are set to face each other in a heated House primary.
Biss, the mayor of Evanston, Illinois, and Abughazaleh, a prominent left-wing social media influencer, are both running in Illinois’ 9th congressional district, which will hold its crowded Democratic primary on March 17 to replace retiring longtime Democratic Illinois Rep. Jan Schakowsky, 81. Both were spotted next to each other at Uptown Chicago’s Green Mill Cocktail Lounge, photos from multiple accounts posted to X on Thursday show.
The photos depict Biss, who is married with two children, seated closely next to Abughazaleh, more than 20 years his junior, in a booth at the century-old bar, with what appeared to be multiple alcoholic drinks on the table.
In one photo, Biss is seen smiling and holding up a glass in the direction of the Abughazaleh. Another shows the mayor tilting his head toward the influencer with just inches separating the two Democrats.
When asked for comment, Biss’ campaign referred the Daily Caller News Foundation to Axios reporter Justin Kaufmann’s X post.
“Ha! These photos were taken about 20 minutes after the 9th Congressional Democratic Primary debate ended (which I moderated),” Kaufmann wrote. “That’s me (the bald guy on the other side). Yes, it was cozy. Have you ever sat in a #GreenMill booth?”
Kaufmann ended the post by saying, “There is nothing inappropriate going on. Jeez.”
Abughazaleh’s campaign, Fine’s campaign and The Green Mill did not respond to the DCNF’s requests for comment.
Recent polling shows Biss in the lead with Abughazaleh in either second or third place amid a chaotic field of 15 Democratic candidates. A February Impact Research poll sponsored by Biss’ campaign showed the Evanston mayor leading with 31% of the vote and Abughazaleh and Democratic Illinois State Sen. Laura Fine tied with 18%. A January GBAO Strategies poll showed Biss and Fine tied with 21% and Abughazaleh with 14% of the vote.
Abughazaleh declared her House candidacy just over a month before Schakowsky announced she would not be seeking reelection. Biss entered the race after Schakowsky’s decision.
Former Vice President Kamala Harris won the district by 37 percentage points in the 2024 presidential election and it was last represented by a Republican in 1949.
Both Abughazaleh and Biss are running as “progressive” Democrats and have both made their opposition to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) a centerpiece of their campaigns.
Abughazaleh made headlines after a grand jury indicted her and five others for allegedly blocking law enforcement vehicles outside an ICE facility in September 2025. The influencer also abruptly ended an interview with journalist Tara Palmeri in October after Palmeri played a video of the Gen Z candidate banging on a federal law enforcement vehicle during the incident.
Biss, meanwhile, told CNN in September 2025 that when ICE comes to his city, he gets “a text.”
“I’m able to go immediately to the location, share rights that individuals have with them, and inform them of their rights. Videotape, bear witness, hold ICE officials accountable,” the mayor told CNN’s Erin Burnett at the time.
Biss received the endorsement of the Congressional Progressive Caucus PAC over Abughazaleh in November 2025.
Before running for office, Abughazaleh notably worked as a video content creator with left-wing media organization Media Matters for America. The 26-year-old House hopeful also came under scrutiny in January after she blamed her narcolepsy, a medical condition that causes “sleep attacks,” for failing to show up to a candidate forum hosted by a chapter of the leftist group Indivisible.
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