India Factor has Dominated American Elections: The Indian-American community is in the news since former President Donald Trump announced who would be his running mate in the 2024 US presidential election. Donald Trump has nominated Ohio Senator JD Vance as his vice-presidential candidate. Usha Chilukuri Vance came into the limelight as the wife of Trump’s running mate JD Vance. Usha Chilukuri’s name has come to the fore at a time when an Indian-origin Kamala Harris is already in the post of Vice President. Apart from this, two big personalities of Indian origin, Vivek Ramaswamy and Nikki Haley, have decided to support the Republican Party’s candidate for the post of President.
Indian American community is important
This is the era of the rise of Indian-Americans in American politics. In the current politics of America, the Indian American community has become important not only for Joe Biden, who is contesting to become President for the second consecutive time, but also for Donald Trump, who is challenging him. Shalabh Kumar, founder of the Republican Hindu Coalition, said, “Indians, especially Hindus, have come a long way.” He said that since coming to the US in the late 60s, they have felt a rise in their population and political power. He said, “Now the time has come. Vance is going to represent the new generation of Americans.” Trump campaign sources said that they feel that Usha Vance can attract minority voters.
Indians in the race for the White House!
The 2024 presidential campaign saw three politicians of South Asian origin or rather Indian origin competing for the White House. Former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley and businessman Vivek Ramaswami both competed during the Republican primaries. While Vice President Kamala Harris is in the race for a second term with President Joe Biden. Now both Nikki Haley and Vivek Ramaswami have supported Trump-Vance. As Asian Americans take on a more central role in the 2024 presidential campaign, political activists in both parties say they hope the increase in representation will correspond with an effort to connect with a voter group that has long been overlooked.
Fastest growing voter group
According to a report, Chintan Patel, executive director of Indian American Impact, said the increase in South Asian representation in politics is ‘unprecedented’. Indian American Impact is a national organization that works to increase representation and civic engagement among Indian and South Asian communities. Patel said, “Since the founding of IMPACT in 2016, representation within South Asian communities has grown from about 50 elected officials to more than 300 across the country, including Vice President Kamala Harris.”
Chintan Patel said that seeing Usha Vance in a position where she can become the first South Asian ‘Second Lady of the Nation’ (wife of the Vice President) helps people think about what is possible. Patel said it is inspiring to see a South Asian woman in Usha Vance’s position. “We are definitely proud that she can be in this position,” he said.
More supporters of Democrats
A 2023 Pew Research Center study showed that, overall, 62 percent of Asian American voters identify as Democrats or lean toward the Democratic Party and 34 percent are Republicans. When broken down by demographic, the study showed that 68 percent of Indian Americans identify as Democrats and 29 percent as Republicans. According to a study by Loyola Marymount and the University of California, President Joe Biden won 69.6 percent of the Asian American vote in 2020, while 76 percent of Indian-Americans voted for him, perhaps inspired by Kamala Harris.
According to a report, Preeti Pandya-Patel, co-founder of the New Jersey Republican Party’s South Asian Coalition, said that when she learned that Usha Vance is Indian and Hindu, she felt proud to know that someone who looks like her can reach the White House. There is a small group of Indian Americans and Hindus who are excited by the prospect of someone like Usha Vance being close to power.
