Jersey City, New Jersey, USA: Indian-American congressional candidate Jay Vaingankar has launched a Hindi-language campaign video aimed at mobilizing support from the South Asian diaspora as he prepares for the upcoming Democratic primary on June 2.
A former official in the Biden administration, Vaingankar is seeking election from New Jersey’s 12th Congressional District and could become the state’s first Gen-Z member of the U.S. Congress if successful.
In the video, Vaingankar addresses the “desi” community directly in Hindi, emphasizing its growing demographic strength in New Jersey while pointing to what he described as longstanding political underrepresentation. He urged community members to unite and support his candidacy, stating that it is time for their voices to be heard more prominently in American politics.
The campaign strategy appears inspired by similar outreach efforts, including those of New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, who reportedly benefited from multilingual voter engagement.
However, Vaingankar’s Hindi-language appeal has generated mixed reactions online. While some praised the outreach effort, others criticised the use of a non-English campaign video and pointed to concerns over his Hindi pronunciation.
The 27-year-old Mercer County native announced his candidacy on December 8 and is aiming to succeed long-serving Democratic Representative Bonnie Watson Coleman.
Vaingankar, the son of Indian immigrants, is a graduate of the University of Pennsylvania and previously worked on President Joe Biden’s 2020 election campaign. He later served in the White House Office of Management and Administration and subsequently as a policy advisor in the Department of Energy.
He faces strong competition in the Democratic primary from several candidates, including Assemblywoman Verlina Reynolds-Jackson, Somerset Commissioner Shanel Robinson, East Windsor Mayor Brad Cohen, Plainfield Mayor Adrian Mapp, entrepreneur Kyle Little, and former mayoral candidate Sujit Singh, in what is expected to be a closely contested race.
