Indian Americans made a mark in Congressional politics with one of them becoming the first to be elected to the Senate and four others winning seats in the House of Representatives.
Kamala Harris was elected from California to the Senate defeating fellow-Democrat Loretta Sanchez.
Pramila Jayapal from Washington, Raja Krishnamoorthi from Illinois and Ro Khanna from California will join Ami Bera, who was re-elected from California, in the House of Representatives.
Tulsi Gabbard, who is a Hindu although not of Indian descent, was re-elected to the House from Hawaii.
All Democrats, they range in age from 35 years to 52 years and represent the emerging class of leaders.
"Winning a Senatorial seat combined with several Congressional victories, has made the community somewhat reach its goal of political involvement," Thomas Abraham, Chairman, Global Organization of People of Indian Origin, told IANS.
"This also help the US and India to come closer as a global partner in trade, investment, education, science and technology, military cooperation and fighting terrorism."
The victory of Harris is significant because senators are elected by the entire electorate in their states and California is the most populous state in the nation with 18 million voters.
The 52-year-old Harris, who traces her family roots to Chennai, is a lawyer by profession and was twice elected Attorney General in 2010 and 2014.
Bera, a 51-year-old doctor, had come under a cloud after his 83-year-old father, Babulal Bera, was found guilty of illegally funding his son's election campaign and sentenced to a year in prison. Prosecutors, however, cleared Ami Bera of involvement in his father's crime and he beat the odds to defeat his Republican rival Scott Jones.
A financial analyst by profession, Jayapal, 51, defeated fellow Democrat, Brady Wilkinshaw. A civil rights activist involved in immigrant and women's rights causes, she was born in India. She received the endorsement of Bernie Sanders, the insurgent socialist who ran against Hillary Clinton in the party primary.
Krishnamoorthi, 43, who had advised President Barack Obama on economic issues when he was a Senator, received a personal endorsement and a promotional video from Obama. He defeated Republican Peter DiCianni in a constituency that comprises Chicago suburbs.
Born in India, he is a technology entrepreneur heading two companies and has also served as Illinois state DeputyTreasurer and an Assistant Attorney General on special assignment to fight corruption.
Khanna, a former federal Deputy Assistant Commerce Secretary, won from the heart of Silicon Valley on his second try. With the endorsement of former President Jimmy Carter, he defeated sitting Congressman Mike Honda in a bitter rematch.
Harris has a dual identity: She is also counted as an African American as her father is a Jamaican of African descent and she follows the Baptist faith.
She would also become the second American woman of African descent elected to the Senate and joins two other African Americans in the Senate.
After her parents divorced, Harris was raised by her mother Shyamala Gopalan, a cancer specialist from Chennai, giving her equal claim to Indian heritage.
Gabbard's Republican rival Angela Kaaihue launched bigoted attack on her with anti-Hindu statements and called her a "pathetic Hindu 1,000 gods leader." Republican Party leaders condemned Kaaihue and withdrew support to her.
The first Indian elected to Congress is Dalip Singh Saund, who won from California in 1956.
RO KHANNA TOPPLES VETERAN CONGRESSMAN TO ENTER HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Ro Khanna defeated the eight-term veteran Mike Honda on Tuesday in his second try to enter the House of Representatives after a bitter contest.
Khanna, who served as former Vice President Al Gore's chief of staff, will represent the heart of Silicon Valley in a constituency where many tech giants like Apple, Facebook, Google and Oracle are located. It is also the only one in mainland America with an Asian American majority.
Former President Jimmy Carter endorsed Khanna, while Honda failed to get President Barack Obama's backing this time.
During the heated campaign, Honda filed a federal suit against Khanna's campaign manager, Brian Parvizshahi, alleging that he illegally accessed Honda's list of donors and other records. Parvizshahi resigned from the Khanna campaign.
Honda was under an investigation by the House Ethics Committee on allegations that he used Congressional staff for campaign work.
Forty-year-old Khanna has a law degree from Yale University and specialised in intellectual property law.
He has been a Deputy Assistant Commerce Secretary and a member of the White House Business Council. He teaches economics at Stanford University and law at Santa Clara University.
Khanna is married to Ritu Ahuja.
JAYAPAL BECOMES FIRST INDIAN AMERICAN WOMAN ELECTED TO US HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Pramila Jayapal became the first Indian American woman elected to the House of Representatives, winning Tuesday's election from Washington state.
She will join other Indian Americans in the Congress, Kamala Harris, the first Indian American elected to the Senate, and three others in the House of Representatives.
Jayapal, who calls herself a "progressive fighter," was endorsed by Bernie Sanders, the insurgent socialist who challenged Hillary Clinton for the Democratic Party presidential nomination. She defeated fellow Democrat Barry Walkinshaw.
In a tweet after her election, she thanked the voters for "standing up for the values of our country - that welcomed me as a 16-year-old immigrant."
A financial analyst by training, she has worked on Wall Street before turning to political activism that has focused on immigrant and women's rights issues. She was recognised by President Barack Obama in 2013 as a "Champion of Change" for her advocacy of immigrant causes.
The 51-year-old Jayapal, who was born in Chennai, is married to Steve Williamson and has a son and a stepson. She is the author of "Pilgrimage to India: A Woman Revisits Her Homeland."
AMI BERA RE-ELECTED TO CONGRESS
Ami Bera, the only Indian American in Congress, has been re-elected to the House of Representatives where he will be joined by three others in the new session in January.
The California Democrat successfully overcame the problem created by his over-enthusiastic father who illegally transferred funds to his election campaign. Babulal Bera, 83, was convicted of election funding fraud and sentenced to a year in prison earlier this year.
Although prosecutors cleared Ami Bera personally of any involvement in the crime, his Republican rival Scott Jones made an issue of it. But Bera won the election with a two percent lead, down from the eight percent lead he had in the in the primary.
Bera was first elected from his constituency, includes a part of California's state capital San Diego, in 2012 and re-elected in 2014. President Barack Obama endorsed him. He also received the support of several trade unions.
He is the co-chair of the India Caucus in Congress, which brings together legislators interested in India. He accompanied Obama during his visit to India in 2015 and was one of the Congressmen who facilitated Prime Minister Narendra Modi's address to Congress this year.
Bera, 51, is a doctor and a convert from Hinduism to the Unitarian faith.
The three newly-elected Indian Americans who will join him are Pramila Jayapal from Washington State, Raja Krishnamoorthi from Illinois and fellow Californian Ro Khanna.
US ENVOY CONGRATULATES KAMALA HARRIS
US Ambassador to India Richard Verma on Wednesday extended special congratulations to Kamala Harris, the first Indian American elected to the US Senate.
"We offer special congratulations to Indian-American senator Kamala Harris, who was elected," Verma said.
Harris was elected from California to the Senate defeating fellow-Democrat Loretta Sanchez.
"I can tell you we have come a long way from when I was working in the House of Representatives as an intern in 1987, when you could count on one hand the people of South-Asian descent who were working in the Capitol Hill," said Verma, who is an American of Indian origin.
Harris, 52, who traces her family roots to Chennai, is a lawyer by profession and was twice elected Attorney General in 2010 and 2014.
Harris has a dual identity: She is also counted as an African American as her father is a Jamaican of African descent and she follows the Baptist faith.
On Wednesday, US elected Donald Trump as its 45th president.
