Two Indian Americans win Democratic primaries in Virginia

Suhas Subramanyam to run for state Senate, Kannan Srinivasan to vie for House in Loudon

Two Indian American candidates Suhas Subramanyam and Kannan Srinivasan have won the Democratic primaries for the Virginia Senate and House of Delegates respectively.

Subramanyam, of Ashburn, a two-term delegate who currently represents the 87th House district, defeated former state delegate and dentist Ibraheem Samirah by a narrow margin in the June 20 primaries, according to preliminary results from the Virginia Department of Elections.

“Thank you to every single volunteer, team member, and voter for the victory. We truly could not have done this work, or delivered this win, without each and every one of you,” Subramanyam tweeted.

READ: Two Indian Americans to run for Virginia legislature (March 7, 2023)

If elected, he will succeed state Senator John Bell, who has announced his retirement from the Senate.

A resident of Loudoun County, Subramanyam became the first Indian-American and South Asian to be ever elected to the Virginia General Assembly in 2019.

A technology and regulatory attorney, Subramanyam served as a White House advisor to former President Barack Obama in 2015, where he led a task force on technology policy that addressed job creation, IT modernization, and regulating emerging technology.

Prior to that, he earned his law degree with honors from Northwestern University School of Law, volunteering at the Center for Wrongful Convictions, where he was part of the legal team that freed a man who had spent 21 years in prison for a crime he didn’t commit.

For his professional accomplishments and work in the community, he was named to the Loudoun Times-Mirror’s ‘40 Under 40.’

Meanwhile, Srinivasan of Potomac Falls defeated fellow Indian American Sirisha Kompalli to grab the 26th District of the Virginia House of Delegates, which includes several Loudoun communities, including Brambleton, Stone Ridge and South Riding.

The newly configured district lies west and south of Dulles Airport and stretches from the Dulles Greenway to the southeastern corner of Loudoun County.

Read: 20 South Asians won 2021 elections from schools to state senate (November 25, 2021)

“Thank you to our amazing team and volunteers and everyone who gave your time and talents. Your work made this possible. And thank you to the voters of District 26 for putting your faith in me. It’s an honor to be your Democratic nominee,” Srinivasan tweeted after his victory.

A Loudoun resident for almost 25 years, Srinivasan immigrated from India in 1993. He serves as vice chair of the Virginia State Medicaid Board, and on the Loudoun Economic Development Advisory Commission.

“My experience in both the public and private sectors will serve the residents of Loudoun and Virginians across the Commonwealth well. I will fight for our public schools, stand up for gun safety, and protect abortion rights,” he had stated while announcing his run.

He most recently worked as a director of finance at device warranty and insurance company Asurion and vice president for finance at celebrity chef José Andrés’s restaurant business, the José Andrés Group, according to Loudoun Now.

Srinivasan said his values come from experience, including being hit by a truck as a young man and being denied Medicaid.

In 2019, Srinivasan ran unsuccessfully against Republican Loudoun County Treasurer Roger Zurn.