Several Indian American candidates have good chance to assume office.
AB Wire
It’s not just South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley, a Republican, and Kamala Harris, a Democrat, running for the US Senate from California with most polls indicating she will win the elections this November, who make political news.
A Forbes story says there are several other Indian American women candidates who are set to win elections and re-elections from various parts of the country, and create history of sorts. It’s likely that the year 2016 will be a watershed year for Indian American women politicians. It’s also very much on the cards that more Indian American women will win elections this year than their male counterparts.
There are several incumbent Indian American politicians at present: Aruna Miller (D-MD) has served in the Maryland House of Delegates since 2011. Kshama Sawant was elected to the Seattle City Council in 2013.
Forbes’ contributor Ronak Desai has these Indian American women candidates as top picks for a successful campaign:
Jenifer Rajkumar (D-NY) – Running for New York State Assembly: In Lower Manhatttan’s 65th Assembly District, Jenifer Rajkumar is running for State Assembly to fill the seat vacated by Sheldon Silver, one of New York’s most powerful political figures who was recently convicted on federal corruption charges.
Rajkumar, 33, a human rights lawyer, is running on a platform of replacing Albany’s culture of corruption with a culture of service. Named a “rising star” by New York’s City & State news outlet, Rajkumar would be the first Indian-American elected to the New York State Legislature.
Kesha Ram (D-VT) – Running for Lieutenant Governor of Vermont: Elected to the Vermont House of Representatives at the age of 22, Kesha Ram made history in 2009 by becoming the youngest female member of the state legislature. Since then, she has established an eight-year track record of building consensus across party lines on a slate of issues affecting the small New England state. Less than a decade later, she is running for Lieutenant Governor of Vermont, hoping to make history once again.
“Throughout my time in the Vermont legislature, I have remained true to my roots. I have worked to support the immigrant and refugee community, including creating immigrant driver’s licenses, advancing community policing and working to erect Vermont’s first Hindu temple. Now, on the campaign trail, I can tell my truly American story of bussing tables in my Indian immigrant father and Jewish American mother’s Irish pub. Vermont is at a pivotal time in its history, when new voices are needed at table to chart out our future. I hope to be one of those voices as Vermont’s next Lieutenant Governor,” she’s quoted as saying.
Mary Thomas (R-FL) – Running for Congress in Florida
Lathika Mary Thomas is running for Congress in Florida. A self-described “strong conservative Republican,” she is challenging Congresswoman Gwen Graham for the seat in the Second Congressional District. If elected, Thomas would make history as the first Indian-American woman elected to Congress.
Thomas was born in Charleston, South Carolina to immigrant parents who arrived in America from India in 1972 with their educations and their hopes of living the American dream.
Thomas asserts, “I’m the only candidate in this race that has substantial experience working on issues that directly impact the people of the Second District. My experience includes: serving as the Governor’s representative in negotiations with the Department of Justice and various states to secure our state and local interests after the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill; developing strategies to protect the Apalachicola Bay from Georgia’s unchecked consumption of water, strategies that ultimately resulted in the filing of a lawsuit against Georgia in the U.S. Supreme Court; and helping to solve military base encroachment issues around the Panhandle’s military installations.”
Pramila Jayapal (D-WA) – Running for Congress in Washington
Indian American political activist and state legislator Pramila Jayapal is running for Congress from Washington’s 7th District for the open seat being vacated by Representative Jim McDermott (D-WA) Born in India, Jayapal came to the United States when she was 16 years old and has spent the last 25 years fighting for progressive priorities in a host of different capacities.
Jayapal says she is running for Congress because “because our system is rigged for corporations and the wealthy, but we can fight back. The time has come to tackle this inequality: we need to raise the minimum wage, expand Social Security and Medicare and ensure debt-free college for young people across America.”
She continues, “We knew then as we know now that our values of justice, fairness and equity are under threat from those who profit from injustice, benefit from unfairness and gain from inequity. We can hear, see and feel this threat every day.”
Read the full Forbes story: