Aruna Miller, an Indian-American politician, has filed nomination from a Congressional seat in Maryland to run for the US Congress. Four others, of which one include Afghan- American Nadia Hashimi, are part of the race.
Currently, the 53-year-old Miller is one of the members of Maryland House of Delegates. She was elected in 2010 as the member and is considered as one of the active Maryland State legislatures.
After officially filing her Certificate of Candidacy for US Congress for the 6th Congressional district of Maryland, Miller said, “As an immigrant, I have been afforded incredible opportunities here. I want to pay it forward and make sure we keep the doors of opportunity open to all our citizens.”
“Congress needs more experienced, progressive legislators at this critical time, if we are going to enact and keep policies that really serve the best interests of the people and our country,” Miller added.
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John Delaney, the current Democratic incumbent to this Congressional District, said that he will run for 2020 Democratic party’s presidential primary instead of seeking re-election.
The Indian-American a civil engineer Aruna Miller is endorsed by EMILY’S List and 314 Action. For 25 years, she worked for Montgomery County. She came to the US with her parents at the age of 7. She said that her political interest was sparked by the Bush v Gore election in 2000, where the Supreme Court decided the country’s fate but not the voters.
“It was then I realised democracy needed me. Not as a bystander or to cast a vote when there’s an election – I needed to engage and empower others every day. I started to volunteer locally which brought me face to face with the needs and problems of others in the community,” Miller said.
Pramila Jayapal, from Washington State, is currently the only one Indian-American women in the current House of Representative. For the first time, she was elected in the 2016 general elections.