Opinion
Mint Quick Edit | US polls have expanded the Samosa Caucus. That’s good.
Summary
- Donald Trump’s big victory is the big headline of America’s vote count, but the count of Americans of Indian origin elected to the US Congress has risen too. This is in consonance with India’s growing closeness to the US and could be mutually beneficial.
As US election results unfolded heavily in Donald Trump’s favour, a separate count was underway: of Indian-Americans elected to the House of Representatives. As many as six secured seats, including Suhas Subramanyam, who became the first American of Indian origin to represent Virginia and the East Coast in the US Congress.
He joins others in the so-called Samosa Caucus, which includes Ami Bera, Raja Krishnamoorthi, Ro Khanna, Pramila Jayapal and Shri Thanedar. In addition, another candidate, Amish Shah, was leading the vote count.
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These six (or seven if Shah wins) would lift the representation of Indian-Americans in the House from five currently. Though they may have differing political loyalties, the growing voice of politicians of Indian descent in the US legislature is in consonance with closer India-US relations over the past two decades.
Trump’s victory isn’t expected to disrupt this. Meanwhile, his Republican Party has wrested back control of the Senate from Democrats, which would ease the path for his policy agenda. Trump’s first term saw some friction with India over trade, but no change in Washington’s view of India’s role as an Asian counterweight to China.
