Two Indian Americans to Face Off in Virginia Special Election for Open House of Delegates From District 26
- Democrat J J Singh and Republican Ram Venkatachalam won their respective primaries to vie for the seat occupied by Kannan Srinivasan.
Two Indian Americans will face off in a Jan. 7 special election for an open House of Delegates seat from District 26 in Loudoun County. J J Singh, former economic policy adviser to Sen. Chris Coons (D-Del.), won the Democratic nomination, while Ram Venkatachalam, a private consultant, was the choice of the Republicans. The seat that was occupied by Kannan Srinivasan, who won the open state Senate seat being vacated by Suhas Subramanyam as he moves to the U.S. Congress. Srinivasan will face Republican Tumay Harding for the 32nd District Senate seat in a Jan. 7 special election.
ABC7 News affiliate WJLA notes that “since Democrats hold a one-seat majority in both the Virginia State Senate and the House of Delegates, this special election in Loudoun County will determine which party holds control in Richmond.”
Democrats who have a 21-19 majority in the Senate, “would lose effective control of the chamber if they lost because a Republican, Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears, has the power to break most tie votes,” according to The Washington Post. In the House, “Democrats have a 51-49 edge and would likely be forced into a power-sharing agreement with the GOP if Republicans flip the seat,” The Post added.
Born and raised in Virginia top parents who immigrated to the U.S. from India in 1970, Singh graduated from the University of Virginia. He became the first turbaned Sikh to serve in the US Peace Corps. During the Obama Administration, JJ worked at the White House Office of Management and Budget, where he analyzed the federal government’s credit obligations. He then served as the Economic Policy Advisor to Democratic Senator Chris Coons.
He serves on the Loudoun County Economic Development Advisory Commission and is the Treasurer of the Loudoun County Democratic Committee. He is an elected member of the board of the National Peace Corps Association, a non-profit that serves Returned Peace Corps Volunteers and advocates for Peace Corps funding. He lives in Loudoun County with his wife Jessica, and their two young daughters.
Venkatachalam says on his website that he’s running “to stop radical politicians from ruining our community and Commonwealth and restore commonsense to Richmond.” As a consultant in the private sector who solves problems for a living,” he wants District 26 constituents “to let him solve the problems that Richmond has created.” He has previously chaired the Loudoun County Transit Advisory Board and served on the Brambleton HOA Board. He currently serves as a representative on the Commonwealth Board of Trustees for the Science Museum of Virginia.
A resident of the 26th House District since 2008, he he and his wife are raising their two children — a 9-year-old daughter and a 7-year-old son — who both attend public elementary school.
(Top photo: J J Singh, center, who won the Democratic primary for a open Delegates seat from District 26 in Loudoun County, with Congressman-elect Suhas Subramanyam, second from left, and Kannan Srinivasan, third from right, who won the open state Senate seat being vacated by Subramanyam.)