Washington, October 12, 2026 (Yes Punjab News)
Three Indian-American Democratic politicians, including US Congressman Shri Thanedar, have lost their 2026 primary contests to challengers backed by progressive groups or the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA), highlighting contests between establishment Democrats and the party’s left wing ahead of the November 3 midterm elections.
Thanedar, a two-term member of the US House representing Michigan’s 13th Congressional District, lost the August 4 primary to state Representative Donavan McKinney, who secured 51.9 per cent of the vote against Thanedar’s 48.1 per cent, according to the figures cited in the source report.
“I want to congratulate Representative Donavan McKinney on a hard fought race. It was a tough election cycle and, in the end, the voters of the 13th District chose him to represent them moving forward,” Thanedar said on August 5.
McKinney, who received backing from Justice Democrats and prominent progressive lawmakers, said the result demonstrated the importance of grassroots support. Justice Democrats spent nearly $1 million on the contest, while Senator Bernie Sanders and Representatives Rashida Tlaib, Ayanna Pressley, Ilhan Omar and Summer Lee also backed him.
House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries supported Thanedar, who had around $5 million available, compared with the $1.37 million raised by McKinney, according to the source report.
In New York, Assemblywoman Jenifer Rajkumar lost the June 23 Democratic primary in Queens’ Assembly District 38 to Democratic Socialists of America member David Orkin. Orkin secured 58.8 per cent of the vote against Rajkumar’s 40.9 per cent, with more than 94 per cent of votes counted at the time.
Orkin was backed by the New York City DSA and DRUM Beats, a South Asian working-class organisation. Rajkumar, elected in 2020 as the first Indian-American woman to serve in New York state office, described her commitment to public service as unchanged despite the defeat. The contest also featured legal and political disputes, including a petition-signature lawsuit against Rajkumar that was dismissed on procedural grounds.
In Georgia, Indian-American state Senate candidate Rahul Garabadu lost the June 16 Democratic runoff for District 7 in Gwinnett County to state Representative Ruwa Romman. Romman received 4,636 votes, or 60.1 per cent, while Garabadu secured 3,073 votes, or 39.9 per cent.
Romman was backed by Sanders, Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Congressman Hank Johnson. Garabadu said he was proud of the campaign he had run, while Romman credited progressive values and grassroots support for her victory.
Progressive politics has also produced prominent South Asian figures, including New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, a Democratic Socialists of America member. In other contests, Nida Allam narrowly lost to incumbent Valerie Foushee in North Carolina’s 4th Congressional District, while Saikat Chakrabarti finished third in California’s 11th District primary.
The defeats come amid a broader wave of primary challenges, with 12 House incumbents reportedly losing primaries this cycle, including seven Democrats. However, Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi’s defeat in the Illinois Senate primary to Lieutenant Governor Juliana Stratton was a contest between establishment Democrats rather than a challenge from the left.
All six current Indian-American members of the US House are Democrats. An AAPI Vote/AAPI Data survey conducted during the summer found Indian-American voters favouring Democratic House candidates over Republicans by 66 per cent to 18 per cent.
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