TikTok's Kat Abu Promises Not To "Shrink Away" From Challenges in Bid for Congress

TikTok creator Kat Abu, also known by her full name, Kat Abughazaleh, just threw her hat in the ring in a bid for Congress. While it isn't unheard of for celebrities or those who have no experience in politics to try and make the leap to making a change in government, some of Kat's followers were still surprised when she shared the announcement across her social media accounts.

Kat is known for her videos in which she comments on the state of United States politics and explains where Fox News went wrong in certain stories, and how she believes the government could change for the better. In that regard, her interest in trying to make a change herself isn't that surprising. But it is still a whole new venture for her after years of being a content creator.

Kat shared the details of her bid for Congress in Illinois's 9th Congressional District with a video explaining how Democrats can do better in her opinion. In her video, she explains that she believes other Democrats "shrink away" from what she refers to as "authoritarian" leaders in power, and she has no intention of doing that, should she be elected.

"Donald Trump and Elon Musk are dismantling our country piece by piece," Kat says in a TikTok where she announces her run for Congress. "And so many Democrats seem content to just sit back and let them. So I say it's time to drop the excuses and grow a f--king spine."

She adds in her video that she believes the Democratic party "has become one where you have to look at the exceptions for real leadership."

According to Kat, she intends to not "work from an outdated playbook" for the good of the country. She also explains that her focus is on the rights of citizens, social security, affordable childcare, and an affordable cost of living, among other issues. And she already has the support of her hundreds of thousands of followers.

"You were in Illinois this whole time???" One user commented on TikTok. "Dang I might be able to actually vote for someone announcing a campaign haha."

Before Kat announced her run for Congress in Illinois, she worked for the non-profit organization Media Matters for America. According to her LinkedIn, she was a rapid response researcher and then a senior video producer from 2022 until 2024. Her job was to make videos sharing the most extreme right-wing propaganda that she could from news cycles. Although she left the organization in 2024, her social media accounts continued to include the same type of content.

As far as Kat's vision for Congress goes, it's all about representation, which she says on her campaign website needs to be more inclusive of a younger generation.

"We (people under like 50, I guess) haven't had the chance to build wealth like previous generations, but that doesn't make our lives worth any less," she explains on her website. "That's why we need representation that actually knows the realities of today's economic and social landscapes."