Ashwin Ramaswami, an Indian American software engineer who has worked on election security, and technology law and policy research is running for the Georgia State Senate, seeking to represent Senate District 48.
If elected, Ramaswami, a second-generation immigrant, would be “the first Indian American in the Georgia State Senate, first Gen Z member, and the only State Senator with a computer science and a law degree.”
“I am fighting to lower costs for all families, increase economic and business opportunity, expand healthcare access, and preserve, protect, and defend democratic institutions for everyday Georgians,” he posted on X announcing his run.
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Ramaswami, a Democrat, announced his candidature following the indictment of the incumbent Republican State Senator, Shawn Still, for attempting to overturn the 2020 election results.
“I’m running against an incumbent who faces criminal charges for trying to overturn the 2020 election results. Both in 2020 and 2022, I worked on election security at the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) to make sure that your vote counts,” he wrote.
“I’m absolutely thrilled by and grateful for the overwhelming support for our vision from my friends, neighbors, mentors, and peers in the community. I can’t thank you all enough!” Ramaswami wrote two days after announcing his run on Dec 12.
Ramaswami who was born and grew up in Johns Creek, GA says, “I’ve worked to make positive change in my community through nonprofits, religious communities, technology startups, and law and policy — all thanks to the wonderful people and resources in my hometown.”
“It’s time for me to pay it forward and help advocate for the futures of young people — and everyone — in our community,” he added.
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“We have a once-in-a-generation opportunity to make transformative investments in our communities,” he wrote noting “the State of Georgia now has $10.7 billion in surplus cash,” and “We should invest it wisely in our future.”
A second-generation immigrant, an Indian American, a twin brother, and an engineer, Ramaswami says he has built a career in software engineering, election security, and technology law and policy research.
With over seven years of experience working to build tech startups, he has worked in the federal government on cybersecurity for three years. He currently runs a consulting company around software architecture, technology law and policy. He attended Georgia Tech, Stanford University, and Georgetown University Law Center.
Ramaswami established and managed a cybersecurity program for state and local election officials at CISA and worked with states across the country, including GA Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger’s office, to flag and fix election security problems in 2020 and 2022, according to his website. Hewas also a fellow in the Georgia Attorney General’s Consumer Protection Division, helping keep Georgians safe online and on social media.
He began teaching classes at Chinmaya Mission for middle and high schoolers about Hindu philosophy and culture, including the Bhagavad Gita. At Georgetown, he founded the Dharmic Law Student Organization (programs for Buddhist, Hindu, Sikh, and Jain students) and helped raise $100,000 to establish an endowment.