Indian American Shrina Kurani enters Congressional race from California

Indian American Democrat Shrina Kurani has said she will challenge 15-term Republican Ken Calvert in California’s 42nd Congressional District for the mid-term elections in November 2022.

“I’m running for Congress to make things work better in Washington so we can develop a sustainable future and build an Inland Empire where people feel safe, healthy, and have opportunities to succeed in fulfilling jobs,” Shrina Kurani, born to Indian immigrant parents in Riverside, said on Thursday.

Indian American Kurani described herself as “an engineer, entrepreneur, and a fact-based problem solver and not a politician” on her website. “Opportunities are out of reach for far too many people while career Washington politicians like Ken Calvert are focused on helping themselves, their political parties, and their corporate donors,” she said.

“Ken Calvert has been in Washington for nearly 30 years and he’s voted against our interest time and time again. It’s time for a new approach,” she added.

Calvert, representing California’s 42nd Congressional District, was first elected in 1992.

Kurani graduated from La Sierra High School when she was 16 and has a degree in mechanical engineering from the University of California, Riverside. A media release said she has worked to start companies aimed at reducing waste and creating sustainable solutions for food and water. She has also served as an advisor to start-up businesses developing ways to make healthcare and education more affordable, accessible, equitable, and effective, it added.

There are four Indian Americans in the House of Representatives including Dr Ami Bera, Ro Khanna, Raja Krishnamoorthi and Pramila Jayapal.