The roughly 2.1 million Indian-American voters constitute only a small part of the more than 161 million strong American electorate. Even then, they have emerged as a notable force in the country's politics. With one of their own, Kamala Harris, on the presidential ballot, the deeply ambitious community is charged up. Now that they have established themselves as an educated and prosperous group, they understand that it is critical that their voices be heard in the corridors of power. And their importance is growing not only as voters, but also as candidates, mobilizers and fundraisers.
Unprecedented fundraising
Political fundraisers are 'witnessing a remarkable increase' in terms of Indian American participation. Ajay Bhutoria, a Democratic National Finance Committee member and fundraiser for more than two decades, says, “More than ever, people are stepping up, contributing larger amounts and actively participating in the political process.”
The $145,000 median income of Indian-American households is 21% higher than the overall U.S. average. Shekar Narasimhan, founder and chairman of the AAPI Victory Fund, the largest Super PAC (political action committee) in the Asian American diaspora, says that while it is not easy to find accurate data on how much money Indian Americans are pumping into campaigns, there are huge donors in the community. This is evident from the fact that the Democratic National Committee on Finance consists of 5% Indian-Americans, while their share of the US population is only 1%. At the same time, small dollar donors are also important, Narasimhan added.
MR Rangaswami, Founder and Chairman of Indiaspora, also notes the remarkable volume of funds being generated. “Now we have two healthy PACs with the AAPI Victory Fund and the Indian American Impact Fund, so more and more money is coming in,” he says. The Indian American Impact, the largest desi PAC, is also identifying and training the next crop of leaders.
Dr. Sangay Mishra, associate professor of political science at Drew University and author of Desis Divided: The Political Lives of South Asian AmericansHis research found that Indian Americans have been “highly visible” in “bundling” campaign contributions since 2012. “We've seen that kind of outsized influence because of the number of very wealthy fundraisers that were organized in the community networks,” he says.
It is a popular saying that the road to the White House passes through Silicon Valley, the hub of affluent Indians in the technology sector. Harris's recent fundraisers in California raised $55 million in one weekend; she has raised a billion dollars since she was nominated. Powerful fundraisers, including those of billionaire AI investor and technologist Vinod Khosla for the Democratic campaign this election cycle, created news waves. There are more than 60 Indian names on the VC list for Kamala. Other business leaders and founders endorsing her include business leaders like Indra Nooyi.
The enduring Republican mood
While Harris's candidacy has further loosened the pockets of enthusiastic Democrats, Donald Trump's Indian-American supporters, including Vivek Ramaswamy, have remained loyal to the Republican Party.
Sampat Shivangi, a longtime Republican believer and the only Indian-American delegate at this year's Republican National Convention, has been elected to the body for the sixth time. He's sending a big check to Trump's campaign. Then there's hotelier Danny Gaekwad, who has contributed to the campaigns of every Republican presidential candidate since George Bush. “The October event involved an insane amount of money. People I know are calling me: Bhau, I want to go, my wife wants to go,” Gaekwad says of a sold-out fundraiser.
Republicans like Shivangi say they support Trump because “Harris is not a friend of India.” In addition to accusations that she has “watered down” her Indian-American identity, they point out that she failed to visit India during her years as vice president.
However, Republicans acknowledge that enthusiasm among the party's Indian-American supporters, especially Hindus, has waned since 2020, when friendly ties between President Trump and Prime Minister Narendra Modi caused a stir. “{Maybe because]he is a third-party candidate,” Gaekwad reasons.
Although courted by both parties, Indian Americans have generally voted for Democrats. A 2024 AAPI Data survey found that 55% of Indian Americans identify as Democrats, 25% as Republicans, and 15% as Independents.
Swing in swing states
The Indian-American community is crucial to both parties because although they make up only 1% of the US population, about a third of them live in presidential battleground states like Michigan and Georgia, where they can play a major role in shaping the results. Reflecting on the narrow Democratic victory in Georgia in 2020, Mishra says: “In a state like this, it matters because the margin was so small. Indian Americans voted one way and the election went that way. If they had voted differently, the results might have been the same. have been different.” The last few presidential elections have been close, decided by narrow differences in a handful of states. Polls show that the current situation appears balanced. There are almost 4,00,000 voters of South Asian descent in the ten most contested swings states'. “There are a significant number of Indian Americans who can make a difference,” says Dr. Mishra.
Volunteers from the highly politically engaged community thus use their resources strategically in crucial states. Sangeeta Ramakrishnan, based in Democratic stronghold California, is They See Blue's “leader” when it comes to swing state calls. She says, “There are more of us in the blue states and since you don't have to knock on as many doors here, it's better to use our resources effectively.”
Every election, Pennsylvania's Buck's County earns the reputation of being the “swingest county in the swingest state.” Rupa Mohan, a volunteer with They See Blue, says, “We have phone banks run by Gujarati volunteers, Malayalam speakers, Urdu speakers. We have a whole bunch of different volunteers lined up.”
Overall, political participation among the 4.8 million young immigrant community is also increasing dramatically. The last two presidential elections had the highest turnout among Asian Americans, comparable to that of white voters. As many as 71% of eligible Indian Americans voted in 2020, an increase of 9 points from 2016. This trend is expected to continue. A recent Asian American voter survey shows that approximately 91% of Indian Americans plan to vote in this election.
Office dreams
It is not just election numbers that are raising the political profile of Indian Americans; they also fuel strong ambitions for office. From the highest level – the presidential post – to Congress, senates, legislatures, district attorneys, city councils and school boards, their numbers are enormous.
No one really knows how many Indian-American candidates there are in the 2024 race. But there are five Indian Americans in the current US Congress, and after the upcoming elections the community will likely have seven, Narasimhan says. Reaching that number has taken decades since the first Indian American was elected to Congress in 1956. But the increase over the past two decades has been exponential, thanks to second-generation Indian Americans and their education levels, which are much higher than those of the US. average.
As for their numbers in government, while Indian Americans make up only 0.6% of the U.S. adult civilian population, they hold about 4.4% of senior positions in government. There are more than 150 Indian Americans in the Biden-Harris administration, and that number is expected to increase by more than 50 if Harris becomes president.
The pursuit of influence
Having conquered every metric on the climbing ladder – votes, money and candidates – Indian-American leaders strive for political representation comparable to what the much older Jewish-American population enjoys. Jews make up about 2% of the US population, but make up 10% of the US Congress. “In fact, we have been here for about thirty years,” says Rangaswami. “We make up 7% of US physicians, 10% of the US IT sector and are well represented in academia and government, so why not have an impact.”
Now that early voting has begun, supporters of both parties are already campaigning aggressively through door-to-door promotions, postcards, phone calls and text messages. “It's going to get even warmer in the coming weeks!” says Shobha Chokkalingam, Atlanta leader of the Georgia chapter of the American Hindu Coalition. But it is the 'desi' Democratic supporters for whom this election is particularly special. With Kamala Harris in the race, the Indian-American community is eager to play a role in making history. Rangaswami sums it up well: “If Kamala Harris becomes president – I mean, remember, there hasn't been a Jewish president in the US – this could be something big. So let's see!”
(Savita Patel is a journalist and producer based in the San Francisco Bay Area. She reports on the Indian diaspora, India-US ties, geopolitics, technology, public health and the environment. She tweets at @SsavitaPatel.)
Disclaimer: These are the personal opinions of the author