Khanna’s perseverance pays off.
Indian American attorney Ro Khanna didn’t give up after his defeat two years ago to long-time veteran congressman Mike Honda from the San Jose congressional district in California.
Khanna is on the road to a terrific victory in his second attempt, leading comfortably with 58% of the votes polled, 58,077 votes in his favor; and Honda trailing far behind with 41,682 votes in his favor.
In 2014, Khanna lost by just three points, and he received 2,200 more votes than the incumbent in the June primary this year.
Khanna was born in 1975 in Philadelphia to Indian parents who immigrated to the US seeking better opportunities and life for their children.
Khanna took student loans to complete his university studies, which according to him, he is still paying off. He was a Phi Beta Kappa graduate in B.A. Economics from the University of Chicago and received a law degree. He also attended Yale Law School and received his law degree in 2001, with his specialization being intellectual property law.
Khanna has worked with Milpitas Mayor Jose Esteves. He also worked with Santa Clara City Councilwoman Lisa Gillmor, and with environmentalists to stand up to Lehigh Cement Plant and insist that the plant is held to modern day environmental standards.
President Barak Obama in 2009 appointed Khanna as the Deputy Assistant Secretary at the Department of Commerce. He has been a proponent of clean technology trade mission, expanding the Green Embassy program, giving an opportunity to US green energy companies to display their products in embassies abroad.
Khanna was also involved in the White House Business Council, maintaining a close relationship between both business and labor in an effort to bring back American manufacturing jobs. American exports grew and he received a letter of commendation from Frank Sanchez, Under Secretary for International Trade, for his services.
Khanna was deeply influenced by the stories of Mahatma Gandhi, and this cemented his commitment for public service, according to reports.
After his studies, he became an active politician and his first political campaign was for a lesser known state Senate candidate, Obama.