In recent years, Kamala Harris and Zohran Mamdani have attracted attention as prominent US politicians of Indian origin. But a string of crucial India-American leaders have left their mark in US politics. Here’re some of them:
State: South Carolina Party: Republican Born in South Carolina to a Punjabi family from Amritsar, Haley enjoyed a 14-year long career in electoral politics. Rising through the ranks of the Republican party, Haley was elected to South Carolina’s House of Representatives in 2004, becoming the first Indian-American in political office there. In 2010, she successfully ran for Governor of South Carolina and was re-elected in 2014 with nearly 56% of the vote. After winning the 2016 presidential election, Donald Trump nominated Haley as the US ambassador to the United Nations. She resigned in October 2018 and unsuccessfully ran in the Republican presidential primary in 2024. State: Louisiana Party: Republican Born in Baton Rouge to a Punjabi family, Jindal got his political start in 1996 by working in his home state’s health department under then governor Mike Foster. From 2001 to 2003, he served in the national health department as part of the Bush administration before stepping down to run for Louisiana Governor. he won his next electoral bid to the House of Representatives in 2004 and retained his seat in 2006 Although he lost the Republican primary. A year later, he won the Louisiana gubernatorial election with 54% of the vote, becoming the first ever Indian-American Governor. He was re-elected in 2011. State: California Party: Democratic Hailing from a village near Amritsar, Saund immigrated to Berkeley, California in 1920 for post-graduate studies and later began working as a farmer. In 1942, Saund founded a lobbyist group aimed at securing US naturalisation rights for Indians. He became a US citizen in 1949 after changes in US legislation after World War 2, and became immediately active in local politics as a staffer. His first electoral victory took place in 1956 as he won a House seat in a traditionally Republican district in southeastern California. Saund was re-elected twice in 1958 and 1960 but lost the 1962 election to the Republican as he suffered a stroke and remained in hospital during the entire campaign period. it would take over 40 years for the second in Bobby Jindal Although Saund was the first Indian-American to hold political office. Krishnamoorthi’s first two local election campaigns in 2010 and 2012 ended in defeat at the Democratic primary stage, but he won his 2016 House race in Illinois’ 8th district—which covers some of Chicago’s northwestern suburbs. State: Michigan Party: Democratic Born in Chikkodi, Karnataka to a Marathi family, Thanedar relocated to Ohio in 1979 to pursue a PhD and gained his US citizenship in 1988. His first foray into politics took place in 2017, self-funding a gubernatorial campaign for the 2018 election. Thanedar’s subsequent campaigns—for seats in the Michigan state House in 2020 and the US House of Representatives in 2022 and 2024—proved to be successful. As a response to Donald Trump’s presidency, Hashmi pivoted to politics at the age of 55 in 2019 by becoming the first Muslim to be elected to the Virginia state Senate. She retained her seat in 2023 and set her sights on the state’s Lieutenant Governor in 2025, beating out Republican challenger John Reid with over 55% of the vote. She will be up for re-election in 2029. In 2018, Pureval ran for the US House in Ohio’s 1st district but lost to the Republican incumbent Steve Chabot. In 2021, he embarked on a mayoral campaign for the city of Cincinnati, relying on his local court reputation. As the city’s first mayor of Asian origin, Pureval’s popularity grew further by the time of the 2025 election, as he defeated his Republican opponent with over 78% of the vote. In 2024, he shifted to active politics and won the mayoral election in Richmond with over 45% of the vote in an open nonpartisan race. A relative outsider without high-profile party endorsements, Avula is Richmond’s first ever immigrant mayor and will be up for re-election in 2028.
Earlier this year, however, he lost his House seat to Democratic primary challenger Donovan McKinney, who had collected more high-profile party endorsements. Saund’s political career ended due to his health issues and he died in 1973 of a second stroke. Jindal ran for President four years later, but suspended his campaign even before voting began in the Republican primary. State: Illinois Party: Democratic Born to Tamil parents in New Delhi, Krishnamoorthi immigrated to the US at just three months old—first to Buffalo, New York, and later to Peoria, Illinois, where his father became a college professor. After attending law school, Krishnamoorthi worked for a district judge in Illinois and later became a staffer for Barack Obama’s House and Senate campaigns in the 2000s. Governing as a moderate Democrat, Krishnamoorthi was re-elected four times but will vacate this seat in January, after his Senate campaign this year ended in defeat at the primary stage. Over the next three decades, Thanedar made millions as an entrepreneur specialising in sales and acquisitions of chemical and pharmaceutical companies. media reporting unearthed controversies over his past business practices which hurt his popularity and led to a heavy defeat in the primary While he ran as a progressive Democrat. Thanedar will officially vacate his seat in January. State: Virginia Party: Democratic Originally from Hyderabad, Hashmi and her family immigrated to the US when she was four to join her father who was teaching at university in Georgia. Hashmi completed her education in Georgia and later taught at colleges in Virginia. State: Ohio Party: Democratic Born in Ohio to a Punjabi father and Tibetan mother, Pureval initially pursued a career in the judiciary, serving as a clerk officer of the court in Hamilton County for five years. Running as a progressive Democrat, he was a distant victor in both the primary and general elections against fellow Democrat David Mann. State: Virginia Party: Democratic Originally from Hyderabad, Avula was still a baby when his family moved to Virginia, where his father opted to join the US Navy. Avula attended medical school and worked as a pediatrician in Virginia’s capital city Richmond, where he attracted public acclaim for leading vaccination campaigns during the pandemic.
