When California Congressman Ami Bera (D-CA) first took office in 2013, he was the only Indian American serving in the U.S. House of Representatives, a chamber comprised of 435 members.
A mere decade later, that number has surged fivefold with Shri Thanedar’s election to the House of Representatives last year. “Things have changed quite a bit,” Bera recounts with a laugh.
Indian Americans represent around 1% of the U.S. population. For the first time in American history, they now represent roughly 1% of the U.S. Congress.
With five Indian Americans now serving in Congress, the Indian American community has achieved an unprecedented milestone, underscoring its political rise across the highest levels of public service.
The historic representation achieved by the community underscores just how far and how fast—Indian Americans have journeyed in the United States.
A History of Exclusion
The Indian American community “has had to overcome a range of obstacles and prejudices to arrive at this moment,” notes Illinois Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi, who was first elected in 2016.
Historically, many of these obstacles and prejudices came from Congress.
In 1914, the U.S. House of Representatives held hearings on legislation that sought to impose stringent, sweeping restrictions on the entry of Indian laborers into the U.S.
Concentrated on the American West Coast, the total number of Indians numbered fewer than 6,500 nationwide by some estimates and comprised mostly of migrant laborers. The community’s small numbers, however, did not shield it from the nativism ascendant in some parts of the country.
During committee hearings, Members of Congress and witnesses alike demanded that Congress enact exclusionary immigration statutes to stem the “emergency” of the “Asiatic invasion.”
Three years later, Congress passed the Immigration Act of 1917 that excluded from the United States all “peoples” living within a “Barred Zone,” which included India. The legislation effectively codified the xenophobia and racism sweeping across the country against the small and fledgling Indian community.
While the Luce-Celler Act of 1946 allowed immigrants from the Indian subcontinent to become naturalized U.S. citizens, the law preserved stringent discriminatory admission quotas that capped India’s numbers to just 100 individuals annually.
Despite these formidable obstacles erected by Congress, the community persisted.
The first Indian American to break through these barriers was Dalip Singh Saund, an Indian-born American judge elected to Congress in 1956, representing California’s 29th District. The Southern California region is now represented by another pioneering Congressman: Mark Takano, the first openly gay, Asian American member elected to the House.
Saund was the first Asian American to be elected to Congress and served three terms in the House.
Nearly 50 years later, Bobby Jindal was elected to Congress to represent a Congressional district in Louisiana in 2004, serving three years before his election to the governorship of the state.
A Rapid Rise
When Bera was elected to office in 2012, he was only the third Indian American to serve in Congress in the institution’s 224-year history after Saund and Jindal.
Fast forward to today, and five Indian Americans have been elected to the House of Representatives in just the last 10 years, a swift and unprecedented rise.
In addition to Bera, Thanedar and Krishnamoorthi, these members include Ro Khanna (D-CA) and Pramila Jayapal (D-WA).
In 2016, Kamala Harris made history as the first Indian American to be elected to the United States Senate. In 2020, she became the first woman and first person of color in U.S. history to serve as Vice President of the United States.
What accounts for the rapid rise of Indian Americans in Congress?
The growing size and influence of the Indian American community across the country is one commonly cited reason.
“There has never been a better moment to be an Indian American—we are leading on contributions to American job creation, American innovation, American education, American hospitality, and American health,” says Khanna, who represents Silicon Valley.
The community’s progress in the public arena is in many ways viewed as a natural and inevitable next step to the success achieved in so many other arenas. “The growing Indian American presence in Washington follows the emergence of Indian American leaders in so many other fields, including medicine, science, technology and business,” Krishnamoorthi says.
Moreover, the evolving cultural and demographic diversity of the U.S. has led to a growing recognition that a representative government is better equipped to address the unique challenges faced by various communities and be more responsive to their unique needs when it looks like the constituents it represents.
“It’s a sign of the American voter acknowledging the strength and importance of our community and our ability to deliver for everyone,” Thanedar adds.
Far-Reaching Significance
The rise of Indian Americans in Congress holds several important implications.
Chief among these is that their presence demonstrates the power of representation in government. “It’s important that the community has a seat at the table,” Bera says. As the Indian American community becomes more politically engaged, their voices are increasingly being heard at the highest levels of government, including Capitol Hill, ensuring that their perspectives are reflected in the legislative process.
The success of Indian American politicians also serves as an inspiration for future generations, encouraging them to pursue careers in public service and strengthening the fabric of the country along with its democratic institutions. “The more common Indian American faces become in Congress and in public service generally, the more inspired others have become to run,” Bera adds.
The number of Indian Americans running for office has steadily increased every year across the country at all levels of government. This even includes the race for the White House where both former Trump UN ambassador Nikki Haley and GOP breakout star Vivek Ramaswamy are vying for the Republican nomination.
The growing number of Indian Americans has also helped further strengthen U.S.-India relations. Members like Khanna, Krishnamoorthi and Bera have a long history of championing the U.S.-India strategic partnership and bring a unique perspective to the multifaceted relationship.
Just last month, Khanna led a successful Congressional delegation to India in his capacity as co-chair of the House Caucus on India and Indian Americans. The grandson of a storied freedom fighter who was imprisoned alongside Mahatma Gandhi by the British, Khanna engaged with figures ranging from Prime Minister Modi to Bollywood megastar Amitabh Bachchan. Khanna’s successful visit captured the richness of India’s political and cultural systems while highlighting the critical role that diaspora members of Congress are playing in bolstering one of the most important bilateral relationships in the world.
A Thriving Samosa Caucus
While the political rise of Indian Americans has garnered national and international attention, the five members of the so-called “Samosa Caucus,” as they call themselves, are focused on a far more straightforward task at home—delivering for their constituents.
“My primary focus is to bring economic prosperity to my district. My priorities are raising the minimum wage, skills training, and workforce development, access to homeownership and promoting small business ownership, too.” In this way, Thanedar sounds like any other member of Congress.
It is noteworthy that Indian American members of Congress are representing districts that are not majority Indian American, or even close to it. Thanedar’s district, for example, is overwhelmingly African American. Jayapal’s district is overwhelmingly white. This underscores how Indian Americans have political appeal and viability far outside the community, a function of their ability to deliver for their constituents.
Predictably, each one of these Indian American members is thriving in Congress, making an impact far beyond their individual districts.
Bera has established himself as one of the leading foreign policy and public health voices in the U.S. Congress and has been floated as a future ambassador or leader of USAID.
Khanna has emerged as one of the country’s most influential progressive leaders, and is widely viewed as a future presidential contender.
Krishnamoorthi was recently appointed the top Democrat on the specially empaneled China Select Committee in Congress—perhaps the only bipartisan committee left in Congress—bringing to bear his background on the Oversight and Intelligence Committees.
Jayapal serves as chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus and has been at the forefront of many significant legislative efforts, particularly in areas of healthcare, immigration reform, and economic justice.
Thanedar, for his part, is on his way toward making his mark. Less than a year into his first term as a member of Congress, he sits on the Small Business and Homeland Security Committees.
In many ways, Thanedar’s story—like those of the other Indian American members of Congress—is the story of the American dream.
Born into abject poverty in India, Thanedar came to the U.S. to pursue higher education. He worked as a janitor and slept in his car to make ends meet and rose to became a successful businessman and ultimately a member of Congress.
“To represent and serve my constituents is an honor of a lifetime,” Thanedar says. “It’s the story of America.”
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