US Election Result 2024: Who is Ro Khanna? Indian-American Re-Elected From California

Indian-American Representative Ro Khanna has secured another term in the US House from California's 17th Congressional District. Khanna comfortably defeated his Republican opponent Anita Chen.

Khanna was elected to the US House for the first time in 2016 after unsettling eight-term incumbent Democratic Representative Mike Honda. The 17th Congressional District, located in the heart of Silicon Valley, has been a stronghold of the Democrats since 1990.

Here is everything you need to know about Ro Khanna, the Indian-American Democrat who was re-elected from California.

Ro Khanna at present holds positions at both the House Armed Services Committee and the Oversight and Accountability Committee of the US House.

Khanna played a key role in authoring the Endless Frontier Act, which later transformed into the expansive CHIPS and Science Act, ultimately signed into law by President Joe Biden. The Endless Frontier Act authorised $110 billion for basic and advanced technology over five years.

As Chair of the House Oversight and Reform Environmental Subcommittee, he played a key role in bringing CEOs of six major fossil fuel companies before the US Congress to testify about climate disinformation.

A strong supporter of the labour movement, Khanna has pushed for policies like the PRO (Protecting the Right to Organize) Act to protect employee rights

Born into an Indian Punjabi Hindu family on Sept. 13, 1976, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Khanna graduated from Council Rock High School North.

He holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in economics with honours from the University of Chicago. Khanna later received a degree in law from Yale University.

Khanna’s parents immigrated to the United States in the 1970s from Punjab in search of better job opportunities. His father is a chemical engineer with degrees from the Indian Institute of Technology and the University of Michigan, while his mother is a school teacher.

According to his official website, Khanna’s commitment to public service comes from the inspiration he got from his maternal grandfather Amarnath Vidyalankar. He worked with Lala Lajpat Rai as part of the Indian independence movement and spent two years in jail.

Before serving in the US Congress, the California Rep. taught economics at Stanford University and served as deputy assistant secretary of commerce at the Obama administration.