Penn Law Student, Once Homeless, Seeks State Office

The Daily Pennsylvanian reports on Dafan Zhang, a Penn Law student who was formerly homeless—after emigrating from China—who is now seeking the Democratic nomination to be a state representative from Delaware County.

Zhang said that he is running for public office in part because he wants to help young people in his community succeed as he has. “Everything has worked out well for me in the last few years. I decided that if I can … achieve success, I can also help others achieve the same,” he said.

Remembering the time he spent homeless on the streets of West Philadelphia, Zhang says he never could have imagined where his life would take him. Years before he enrolled at Penn Law, “I used to come to campus and hang out, [but] I always worried that I would be kicked out,” he said. Today, he wants to pass on the success he has gained through education to young people in Delaware County.

Zhang has two opponents for the nomination.