Trump’s Red Tide Sinks Democrat Kamala Harris, but Lifts Some of the South Asian Local Candidates

HOUSTON: Former President Donald Trump’s landslide election is still reverberating through the local Indo-American community. Trump secured his nonconsecutive term by winning the electoral college by 295 compared to 226 for Harris. According to one theory, 13 million Democrats, who had voted for Biden in 2020, simply stayed
home for various reasons.

Some of the key frontrunners who might win key positions in the Trump cabinet could be former presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy, recent Trump supporter Tulsi Gabbard, security expert Kash Patel. Nikki Haley, and possibly, even Bobby Jindal.

Here in Texas, incumbent Senator Ted Cruz won reelection with 53.1% of the vote. Other Congressional representatives who won included Dan Crenshaw and Lizzie Fletcher. Former Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner secured the District 18 seat, held for several decades by the late Sheila Jackson Lee, with 69.4% of the vote.

Nationally, the Samosa Caucus in the US Congress now stands at six with the addition of Suhas Subramanyam,
winner of the Virginia’s 10th Congressional District. Veteran Samosa Caucus members Raja Krishnamurthy, Shri Thanedar, Ro Khanna, Pramila Jayapal and Ami Bera were all re-elected. The caucus might expand to seven if Amish Shah is able to win his race in Arizona’s District 1.

In Fort Bend County, Andy Meyers won his re-election bid for Precinct 3 Commissioner with 59% of the vote against Taral Patel, who is facing nine charges for online impersonation. In Fort Bend’s Precinct 3, Republican Ali Sheikhani’s well funded campaign for Constable ousted incumbent Nabil Shike with a 52.22% majority.

In the Texas State Assembly, two Pakistan-origin Democratic candidates won re-election: Salman Bhojani and Dr. Suleman Lalani. Bhojani won in District 92 and Lalani successfully defended his seat in District 76, winning 56.1% of
the vote. Republican Aaron Bashir faced a setback in Pennsylvania’s tight Congressional race.