CHICAGO (Diya TV) — For 43-year-old Raja Krishnamoorthi, everything is about to change — as Illinois’ first Indian-American elected official, he is preparing to ship out as a new congressman of the state’s 8th District.

But the way he sees it, Krishnamoorthi will be taking off at the same time Donald Trump is becoming President without a mandate after losing the popular vote by approximately 2.5 million ballots. He believes that serves as an opening for himself, and fellow House Democrats, to win some concessions.

“Donald Trump will become president even after losing the popular vote in our November elections by a wide margin,” Krishnamoorthi said in an interview with NBC News. “To govern effectively, he must appeal to a broader base than what he campaigned on and avoid the divisive rhetoric that alienated so many Americans.”

Not only will he be Illinois’ first-ever Indian-American elected official, but Krishnamoorthi will be just one of 18 total Asian-American and Pacific Islander members of Congress, according to Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus.

He defeated Republican opponent Peter DiCianni by approximately 17 points in the race to replace longtime Democrat Rep. Tammy Duckworth, who herself has graduated to the Senate. During the election, Krishnamoorthi won endorsements from the Chicago Tribune and the Chicago Sun-Times as well as from President Barack Obama.

“My hope is that we will find ways to work together rather than falling into the partisan dysfunction that’s plagued Washington for years,” he said.

Born and raised in Illinois as the son of Indian immigrants, the father of three has experience in both the public and private sectors. He previously served as the state’s deputy treasurer, special assistant attorney general, and chairperson of the audit committee of the Illinois Housing Development Authority.

Krishnamoorthi co-founded InSPIRE, a non-profit organization that trains inner-city students and veterans in solar technology.

Once he gets to Congress, Krishnamoorthi intents for his main focus to be on infrastructure, immigration reform and job creation — three pillars he noted were also heavy elements of President-elect Trump’s campaign.

“If Donald Trump is sincere in looking to advance those issues in a meaningful way, I will work with him to pass legislation that makes progress in those areas,” Krishnamoorthi said.

While he agrees the country could use immigration reform, Krishnamoorthi said building a wall and deporting undocumented immigrants who have lived most of their lives in the U.S. is no way to go about fixing a broken and corrupt system.

“I hope that President-elect Trump will drop his unrealistic campaign pledge to deport millions of immigrants who’ve made their lives in this country and contribute to our country,” he said. “In addition, I would like to work with the new administration and my Republican colleagues in Congress to allow the tens of thousands of foreign students who attend U.S. universities and graduate schools to stay in this country to start businesses and create jobs.”

Information from NBC News contributed to this report.