The Indian American is running for the office of Lieutenant Governor of Vermont.
By Raif Karerat
When she was first elected to the Vermont House of Representatives in 2008 at the age of 22, Kesha Ram achieved the honor of being the youngest person to hold public office in the United States at the time.
The daughter of a Hindu father, who emigrated from India, and Jewish mother from Illinois, Ram is the product of a culturally diverse household that instilled her with a passion for advocacy and civic engagement underscored by the embracement of diversity, equity, and community service.
Prior to entering municipal politics under the auspice of the Democratic party, she was the legal director for Women Helping Battered Women — which assists victims of domestic violence in the courtroom and throughout family and criminal legal proceedings — and also taught preschool.
In addition to her role in the Vermont House of Representatives, Ram currently serves on the boards of the Center for Whole Communities, Emerge Vermont, and the University of Vermont, from where she graduated magna cum laude in 2008 with a B.S. in Natural Resource Planning and a B.A. in Political Science.
On October 11, 2015, Ram announced she would be running for Lieutenant Governor of Vermont. The Lieutenant Governor hopeful recently corresponded with The American Bazaar via email and answered a range of questions regarding her platform, background and blueprint for the future.
After serving as a State Representative for eight years, what catalyzed your run for Lieutenant Governor?
We are at a pivotal time in our state and nation. Middle class families are struggling, young people are suffocating with student debt, and the political rhetoric is turning toward hatred and division. I am running to be Vermont’s next Lieutenant Governor to help working families and small businesses thrive, to make college more affordable, and to help build a brighter future for our state. The Lieutenant Governor should be a connector-in-chief — someone who will listen, act, and bring Vermonters together to solve our most intractable problems. I will bring the same passion, energy, and commitment to consensus-building that I brought to my legislative career, as well as my work in early childhood education, domestic violence social work, and local government.
What are the cornerstones of your platform?
Vermont needs a focused opportunity agenda that supports investment and innovation to help Vermont’s next generation thrive. There are critical issues for Vermont families that underpin this opportunity agenda: increasing access to quality, affordable early learning opportunities from birth to kindergarten; making college affordable for all Vermonters; building pathways to affordable housing and homeownership; and fully connecting our state with high-speed broadband Internet.
Once elected, what imperatives would you want to table immediately, within the first six months or so in office?
Within the first six months of taking office, it is important for the Lieutenant Governor to establish a strong working relationship with the Governor, regardless of party affiliation. The constitutional duties of the Lieutenant Governor include presiding over the State Senate and casting tie-breaking votes, so I would also meet with every Senator and find common ground regarding what we can accomplish together. Finally, it is vital to work with the Administration to develop the tools necessary to make data-driven decisions in Vermont, which will allow us to better gauge how we can improve the lives of all Vermonters, what is working, and what is not in terms of our investments of time and resources.
Do you believe your work in curbing climate change can be translated to the national stage in the near future?
Addressing climate change is one of the greatest moral and political imperatives of our time. As a millennial candidate, my generation is watching our future become jeopardized by this threat, and I am in a unique position to catalyze intergenerational change. I am proud to be part of a strong national network of progressive leaders working cooperatively to address climate change, from the National Council of Environmental Legislators to serving as an Oxfam Climate Change Ambassador. States and municipalities can and will take the lead on building a sustainable future, and that will create needed change in Washington.
Act 46, which pushes school districts to merge over the next three years has proven somewhat unpopular. Why is that, and what are your thoughts?
Vermonters care deeply about their schools. Vermont schools are the heart of many of our communities, and we value human scale and individualized learning opportunities for our children. The major goals of the bill align with my own beliefs about education — ensuring all students have the same access to learning opportunities, helping our young people be college-ready, and reducing overhead to focus costs on quality and outcomes. That said, we have uniquely configured communities that require more flexibility and a greater sense of shared governance than is currently provided for in Act 46.
Detractors sometimes equate progressiveness to naive idealism. What is your response to that sentiment?
Vermont is a state that has married progressive ideals with pragmatic solutions. We have taken good ideas from whatever side of aisle they may come, but that doesn’t mean we give up on our values for taking care of one another and not leaving anyone behind. In Vermont, we have low unemployment, a world-class education system, and balance our state budget every year. That said, we cannot rest on our laurels when we know that, in Vermont, the income gap is widening, the population is aging, and young families are having a hard time affording to live here.
In having an Indian father and Jewish mother from Illinois, how did growing up with two distinct cultural influences impact your outlook on embracing diversity and equity?
I have often said on the campaign trail that I get my appreciation for a hard day’s work from growing up in my Indian immigrant father and Jewish American mother’s Irish pub. They gave me and my two older siblings a sense of duty to give back to the community, stand up for what we believed in, and ensure no one is left behind.
What is your relationship with Indian American voters in Vermont?
We are not a very large community — approximately 300 families identify as Indian American in Vermont. There is, however, a larger Hindu population made up of our Bhutanese Nepali refugee families. I have worked with and been an advocate for these communities, both in my roles as a legislator and community advocate in the City of Burlington, and as a member of the community myself. Currently, we are working to build the first Hindu temple in Vermont as our population grows.
As the youngest elected official in Vermont’s history, what is your perspective on the role that millenials have to play in modern-day policy making?
(I am not the youngest in Vermont history, but when I was first elected, I was the youngest at the time in Vermont and the nation.)
Vermont is the last state left in the nation without a workforce where millennials make up a majority. We need to acknowledge that we have an aging population, and we will only have the infrastructure and support to take care of them if we support and empower the next generation to root themselves here. It’s easy to talk about young people without giving them a seat at the table. My candidacy is about being a voice so they have an ownership stake in the future of Vermont.
Who are you endorsing in the 2016 presidential race?
The man who first gave me a political platform to speak up for my beliefs in Vermont, Bernie Sanders. He has always sought to make sure all voices are heard and no one is left behind, and for that I am deeply grateful and inspired. I am a proud co-chair of Asian Americans for Bernie and will work hard to get him elected. That said, we have to remember that Democrats are working to build a bridge to the American Dream while Republicans are outcompeting themselves to build a wall around it. We must elect a Democrat in 2016 for the sake of our collective future.
Beyond your lieutenant-gubernatorial run, what are your plans for the future?
I am truly enjoying the opportunity to connect with as many Vermonters as possible and have a rich exchange of ideas. I am building an inclusive platform and an agenda that supports our families, businesses, and all Vermonters. I am wholly focused on the health and future of Vermont, and will do everything in my power, both on the campaign and beyond, to make sure we create a brighter future for Vermont.