Indian American in Chicagoland declares run for the Republican primaries for the U.S. Congress

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Indian-American Republican Jitendra Diganvker has announced that he will run for his party’s primaries for the U.S. U.S. House of Representatives from District 8 in Illinois. If he wins the primary, he will run up against incumbent Indian American Democratic Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi who was elected last year as the only Indian-American from Illinois in the lower house.

According to the PTI, Diganvker, a business owner and community worker, said that he is running for Congress to give a voice to the hard-working middle-class Americans that are too often ignored by career politicians in Washington D.C.

“I am not a politician. While most politicians pass laws yet never feel the effects of their actions, I come from real America. I have felt these struggles and know first-hand the consequences of Washington’s action, and inaction, on issues important to middle-class families. I will be the voice of everyday Americans in Washington,” he said in a media release.

“Immigrating to our great country, my family and I have experienced many highs and lows. My family came to America to achieve the American dream–to succeed or fail by our hard work and commitment. Today, career politicians have left behind hard-working middle-class Americans. I will be a voice for those very people who have been left behind, because my family is one of them,” Diganvker told PTI.

Diganvker suffered a major tragedy in 1999, when he lost his two daughters in a tragic house fire. He claimed that this incident allowed him to see first-hand, how burdensome government regulations and rising health care costs could discourage the entrepreneurial spirit.

The U.S. House of Representative currently has four Indian Americans, all of them Democrats: Ami Bera and Ro Khanna from California, Krishnamoorthi, and Pramila Jayapal from Washington State. All of them will be seeking re-election next year.