Indian-Americans Make Strong Push in US Midterm Elections

Indian-origin candidates are making a significant impact in the US midterm elections, contesting for several key positions ranging from governors and senators to mayors and local council members. The elections, scheduled for Tuesday, November 3, are witnessing participation from candidates of Indian heritage across multiple states. The United States is home to approximately 5.2 million people of Indian origin. Their political representation dates back to 1956, when Dalip Singh Saund became the first Asian American elected to the US House of Representatives. He went on to serve three terms in Congress. Among the prominent candidates this time is Republican Vivek Ramaswamy, who is contesting the Ohio gubernatorial race against Democrat Amy Acton. If elected, he would become the third Indian-origin governor in US history, following Bobby Jindal of Louisiana and Nikki Haley of South Carolina. Hyderabad-born Aruna Miller is also seeking re-election as Maryland's Lieutenant Governor, while Nithya Raman is in the race for Mayor of Los Angeles.

Several Indian-American lawmakers are seeking another term in the US Congress, including Democrats Ro Khanna, Ami Bera, Pramila Jayapal and Suhas Subramanyam. Other Indian-origin candidates are challenging established political figures and contesting various state and local elections. Ritesh Tandon is challenging Ro Khanna, while Pramila Jayapal is facing Nirav Sheth, who was born in Gujarat. Piya Dandia is contesting in Florida, Amish Shah in Arizona, and Mahesh Ganorker, Sandeep Dixit and Anil Kumar are also among the candidates. In state-level contests, Priya Sundareshan is seeking another term as an Arizona state senator, while Ranjeev Puri is contesting in Michigan and Sarita Komatireddy and Lisa Kaul are in the race in New York. Josh Kaul is contesting for Wisconsin Attorney General, while Pooja Sethi is in the race in Texas, Suchita Patel in Georgia and Aparna Raj in Washington, DC.