Risheq, 25, a first-generation American of Arab and Jewish descent, was mentioned in an April story in Time about a new generation of grassroots Democratic candidates and was featured in a Huffington Post story in April with the headline, “The Resistance gave birth to a girl and her name is Hannah Risheq.”

Risheq recently earned a master’s degree in social work and social policy from Columbia University — her second master’s degree. She said she’d love to work in a bipartisan fashion in the General Assembly, but noted that she grew up in the Obama era when Congress refused to operate that way following passage of the Affordable Care Act in 2010.

She said Democratic primary voters aren’t aware Delaney was once a registered Republican.

“It’s OK if you were a Republican and then decided that you believe the Democratic platform, but it’s not OK to hide it,” Risheq said.

The detail about Delaney’s previous voter registration shows up in public records searches. Delaney was appointed to a city council seat in West Melbourne, Fla., in 2004. As of 2005, she was registered as a Republican in Florida. She lost election in November of that year to an anti-tax newcomer, 58 percent to 42 percent. In Virginia, voters do not register by party.