SAN FRANCISCO (Diya TV) — Indian-American Democrat Raja Krishnamoorthi has won the 8th Congressional District race against Republican Peter DiCianni, according to a report from the Associated Press.
Krishnamoorthi and DiCianni were both trying to win the seat vacated by Tammy Duckworth, who won Illinois’ U.S. Senate seat Tuesday night.
The Illinois-based businessman received an endorsement from President Obama. “As the son of immigrants who worked their way into the middle-class, Raja understands both the challenges facing America’s working families and the opportunities their work make possible,” Obama said in his endorsement.
The 42-year-old was born in Delhi and grew up in Peoria, Illinois. He served as policy director of President Obama’s 2004 Senate campaign, as well as deputy treasurer of Illinois from 2007 through 2009. In 2010, he ran unsuccessfully for the Democratic nomination of Illinois State Comptroller, losing to David E. Miller by less than one percent of the vote.
Krishnamoorthi is the co-founder of InSPIRE, a non-profit organization that provides training to Illinois students and veterans in solar technology and was formerly Vice-Chairman of the Illinois Innovation Council, whose mission is to promote innovative technologies that support economic growth and job creation in Illinois.
“I am someone who believes very much in entrepreneurship and helping small businesses to grow because I believe that they are at the heart of economy,” he was quoted as saying earlier this year.
The eighth Congressional district has a strong presence of Asian-Americans with a sizable population of Indian-Americans.
