It's time for Indian Americans to run for elected offices at all levels, says Congressman Raja Krishnamoorth

Its time for Indian Americans to run for elected offices at all levels and never miss to vote, influential US Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi has said, as he highlighted the importance of participating in the civic affairs of the country.Krishnamoorthi, a Democrat, was speaking before eminent Indian Americans who had gathered in the American Capital for the annual summit of Indian American Impact, a Democratic think-tank.

It's time for Indian Americans to run for elected offices at all levels and never miss to vote, influential US Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi has said, as he highlighted the importance of participating in the civic affairs of the country.

Krishnamoorthi, a Democrat, was speaking before eminent Indian Americans who had gathered in the American Capital for the annual summit of Indian American Impact, a Democratic think-tank. "We have to vote. Will everyone here vote in that coming election? Because we can talk politics all day, but doing politics is what matters. Remember, politics is not just a noun, it's a verb. And we have to do politics this year. We have to vote," Krishnamoorthi said.

His remarks came ahead of the November 2024 US presidential election in which incumbent Joe Biden, a Democrat is set to face former president Donald Trump, a Republican. "Secondly, we have to work on political causes bigger than ourselves. We have to support our local mandirs. We have to support our local mosques. We have to support our local not-for-profits. I hope you do that and you give generously. But we also have to work on political issues bigger than ourselves," said the Indian-American Congressman, who represents the suburb of Chicago in the House of Representatives "Whether you're a Democrat, Republican or an independent, I don't care as long as you recognise that you need to participate in the civic affairs of your country. And now is the time to do it," he asserted.

"My third and final point is, it's time to run for office. It's time to run for office at all levels," Krishnamoorthi, 50, said a day after Vice President Kamala Harris said that Indian Americans are under-represented in the elected offices in the United States.

Krishnamoorthi praised the role of Indian American Impact in mobilising the community.

"Impact is making a strong impact so that we can have more and more and more people at all levels pulling up a seat to the table. There is this old saying in Washington, which is, if you don't have a seat at the table, you're on the menu. None of us can afford to be on the menu, not this year or any year," he said.

"So, I hope that more people consider running for office. Perhaps you'll run for city council, maybe for State house, State senate. You'll run for Congress," Krishnamoorthi said.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)