Four out of six Indian Americans contesting elections won their seats in Lexington Town Meeting Member elections. A total of 19 Indian Americans are now officials in town government.
The 2020 presidential election cycle may have got an extra Indian American interest this year, with Kamala Harris proving to be a big draw.
But members of the community are also leaving their imprints in the state, local, county and council levels as well. In Lexington, MA, in closely contested Town Meeting Member (TMM) elections, held on March 4, four out of the six contesting Indian American candidates won their seats.
With the March 4 election results, now the number of Indian Americans in local town government is 19.
Located to the northwest of Boston and part of the Greater Boston Area, Lexington has a population of more than 33,000. Nearly 5 percent of the population is Indian American.
The four winning candidates include two freshmen Ajay Joseph and Dilip Patel. Incumbents Pam Joshi and Vikas Kinger were able to keep their seats. However, two candidates, Umesh Shelat and Jyotsana Kakullvarapu, lost their respective seats.
Amongst the winning candidates, Joseph has been a Lexington resident for close to two decades. He worked as the Chief Technology Officer in the local firm iBasis. An alumnus of the Columbia University and Harvard Business School, Joseph has vowed to protect the seniors and rebalance the residential taxes.
Patel is a practicing physician and managing partner at Winchester Hospital. In the past, he has also served as assistant professor at UMass Medical School and also as chief of anesthesia at Milford Regional Hospital. Patel has been living and working in Lexington for 17 years now.
Incumbent Joshi is a policy researcher, project director and teacher at Brandeis University. A long-time local resident, she has been involved in various volunteering activities in the town committees, such as Human Services Committee, and Mental Health and Wellness Task Force. Another incumbent,
Kinger owns a start-up and has been a local resident for a long time. An MBA from Boston University, he had been involved in the passing of many bills and bylaws in the town. He has worked towards supporting public schools and making the town secure and friendly.
On Monday March 4, the day of the election in Lexington, there was a heavy snow storm in the area. And even though the schools were closed, the elections were held as usual with a huge turn-out of people braving the weather to cast their votes.