Washington: An astounding 34 Indian American and South Asian candidates made bids for state Legislature seats in the Nov. 6 midterm election, catching the ‘Blue Wave’ that spread across the nation, as 13 Democrats and one Republican won or retained their seats. In Kentucky, Democrat Nima Kulkarni overwhelmingly defeated Republican Joshua Neubert for Kentucky House of Representatives District 40, grabbing more than 74 per cent of the votes.
In Michigan’s House District 41, Democrat Padma Kuppa won against Republican Doug Tietz. Kuppa collected 51.3 per cent versus 48.7 per cent for Tietz. Kevin Thomas, who initially had sought a seat in the 2nd Congressional District in New York, refocused his campaign on the state Senate in District 6. It was a good move for Thomas, a Democrat, who prevailed over the Republican incumbent, Kemp Hannon, 50.6 per cent to 49.3 per cent.
In New York, Republican Khorshed Chowdhury was hoping to unseat Democratic incumbent Erik Dilan for the state Senate seat in the 54th Legislative District. But the race wasn’t close, with Dilan receiving 91.4 per cent of the vote in gaining re-election. Democrat Jeremy Cooney, who was born in India and adopted by an Irish family, lost his bid for the New York state Senate. Incumbent Republican Joe Robach kept his seat, defeating Cooney by a 56-44 margin.
In California, state Assembly member Ash Kalra, in the 27th Legislative District, was seeking re-election for a second term. Republican challenger Burt Lancaster was hoping to unseat the incumbent, but the Indian American received 72.2 per cent in winning the seat. In North Carolina, Democrat incumbent Jay Chaudhuri overwhelmingly defeated Libertarian challengers Brian Lewis and Republican Alan David Michael to retain his seat in the state Senate. Chaudhuri received more than 73 per cent of the vote. Also in North Carolina, Democrat Nasif Majeed, making his second bid for a state House seat, handsomely beat Republican Joshua Niday, capturing more than 82 per cent of the votes.
Mujtaba Mohammed, a Democrat, ran for the 38th District seat in the North Carolina state Senate. Up against Republican Richard Rivette, Mohammed received 81.7 per cent of the vote, winning handily over Rivette. In Ohio, Niraj Antani, who has been named among the rising stars of the Republican Party, was seeking a third term to represent Ohio’s House of Representatives in the 42nd Legislative District. In Wisconsin, Josh Kaul, a Democrat, was successful in his pursuit to win the state Attorney General’s seat. Taking on Republican incumbent Brad Schimel and the Constitution Party’s Terry Larson, Kaul shocked the incumbent. In Maryland, Kumar Barve was among three candidates who were voted into the state House of Delegates in the 17th District.
In Georgia, Bangladeshi American Sheikh Rahman, who won the District 5 seat in the Georgia state Senate, ran unopposed. Running unopposed, Ram Villivalam won the District 8 seat in the Illinois state Senate. In March, Villivalam won the primary election – 51 per cent to 30 per cent – over the incumbent Ira Silverstein.
Two seats were up for grabs in the 24th District of the Arizona House of Representatives, which Amish Shah was running for. Shah, a Democrat, along with another Democrat Jennifer Longdon, won the two seats, receiving 39.2 per cent and 40.3 per cent, respectively. In Washington state, Vandana Slatter hung on to her position in the state House, in an uncontested race. Mona Das was hoping to win the state Senate seat in Washington’s 47th Legislative District. A Democrat, Das had advanced in the primary to face Republican Joe Fain in the general.
