First Gen Z Indian-American candidate for a US state legislature gets Senator's endorsement

Washington: Ashwin Ramaswami, the first Gen-Z Indian-American candidate to run for a US state legislature, has been endorsed by US Senator Jon Ossoff for the Georgia state Senate seat.

Ramaswami, 24, is contesting in the Democratic Party for State Senate in District 48 in the US state of Georgia.

The endorsement is seen as a big boost to his maiden campaign against incumbent State Senator Shawn Still, a Republican, who has been indicted for trying to overturn the 2020 election results in Georgia.

Still was indicted with former president Donald Trump for the January 6, 2021, insurrection at the US Capitol.

“Ashwin Ramaswami would be a tireless advocate for democracy and his constituents in the Georgia State Senate,” said Senator Ossoff.

“The contrast could not be clearer: Ashwin is a former election security expert, and he is running against a MAGA (Make American Great Again) politician alleged to have participated in an effort to steal the 2020 election when Raphael Warnock and I were on the ballot,” he said.

“It’s not an exaggeration to say that democracy is on the ballot in Senate District 48. We need Ashwin in the State Senate – and I’m proud to stand behind him in this race,” Ossoff said.

Thanking the Senator for the endorsement, Ramaswami said, “From delivering billions in Georgia infrastructure upgrades to tackling climate change to strengthening our cybersecurity – Senator Ossoff has been a champion for Georgia."

“But those successes only go so far if they’re eroded by far-right Republicans like my opponent at the state level," he said.

"I’m so grateful to earn Senator Ossoff’s support, and I look forward to working with him in the fight to expand healthcare access, invest in housing options, and protect our elections from extremists who seek to undermine them,” he added.

Senator Ossoff is a member of the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs (HSGAC), which oversees the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA).

Ramaswami left his job in election security at CISA to run against Still.

According to the latest finance report, he has outraised his opponent, raising more than USD 280,000 in his grassroots campaign.

Ramaswamy graduated from Georgetown University in May. If elected, he would be the youngest ever elected representative in the State of Georgia and the first Indian American to win this position in Georgia.

Ramaswami's parents immigrated to the US from Tamil Nadu in 1990. Generation Z (also known as Zoomers) encompasses those born between 1997 and 2012.