The Indian Diaspora Wave in US Politics Continues

After Indian-origin Zohran Mamdani, who won in the New York mayoral race, another woman, with her roots in India, Nithya Raman, is contesting for the Los Angeles Mayor post.

Political observers drew parallels between Raman and Mamdani. Raman’s campaign focuses on an urgency, stating that Los Angeles is at a breaking point, with worsening affordability, homelessness, safety concerns and the inability of the citizens in managing the basics.

Stating these factors, she pitched the need for a mayor who is willing to overhaul the systems and also demand accountability from the city departments.

Even Mamdani, during his 2025 campaign, touched upon affordability and abundance. He also vouched for bold and progressive policies that could deal with the high cost of living in New York city.

Born in Kerala, Raman, 44, moved to the US when she was six-years-old. She filed her nomination just hours before the deadline, immediately changing the electoral landscape. Raman will be contesting against incumbent mayor Karen Bass and many others.

Political analysts pointed out that the sudden plot twist, filing nomination to contest against Bass, has electrified the race. It is being predicted that Raman could be a strong contender capable of replacing Bass, just like Mamdani replaced Eric Adams.

The Indian diaspora in US is creating sensation in both tech sector and politics. While many Indian-origin techies are holding key roles in various tech giants like Alphabet (CEO Sundar Pichai), Microsoft (CEO Satya Nadella), Adobe Inc. (CEO Shantanu Narayen), a few others have climbed to the top echelons in politics, including former US Vice President Kamala Harris, US President Donald Trump loyalist Vivek Ramaswamy, New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani.