JINDAL: The World Reacts to the Victory

Bobby Jindal, 36, makes history, becoming the first South Asian American governor of a U.S. state, winning the Louisiana election a few minutes ago. I have been live blogging the event at SAJAforum and you can see how the results trickled in over the last hour or so at http://www.sajaforum.org/2007/10/jindal-live-blo.html.

The son of Indian immigrants, he lost the governor's race in 2003, then became the first Indian elected to Congress in 2004 and was re-elected in 2006. As a conservative Republican who converted to Catholocism as a teenager, he hasn't received the support of all South Asians in the U.S. See my earlier post on Saturday, Bobby Jindal's Big Day, which talked about some of the attitudes toward him in the South Asian community.

More reactions from around the world coming here... See roundup of front pages. Post your comments below.

• Here's an in-depth story from Sunday, a full day after his win: "Governor-Elect Tackles Louisiana's Image," by Melinda Deslatte (Oct. 21, 11:55 p.m.)

• From the Indian American Leadership Initiative, a leading Democratic organization among Indian Americans:

(arrived 12:01 a.m. Oct. 21)

Contact: Jay Chaudhuri, President, IALI
Phone: (919) 423-5281 (cell)                                                                                    
www.ialeadership.com

Jay Chaudhuri, President of the Indian American Leadership Initiative issued the following statement regarding Governor-Elect Bobby Jindal's victory.

"Tonight, Bobby Jindal replaces the Mardi Gras Indians as the best known Indian from Louisiana. We congratulate him for providing Indian-Americans a seat of the table. The test over the next four years is whether he is the right person for the seat. We hope that Governor Jindal proceeds with caution on social policies such as mandatory prayer in school which will be troubling to many Indian-Americans."

From NYTimes.com (click to magnify the screen grab): Indian-American Wins Vote to be Louisiana's Governor.

Bobby Jindal, a conservative Republican congressman from the New Orleans suburbs and the son of immigrants from India, was elected Louisiana’s governor Saturday, inheriting a state that was suffering well before Hurricane Katrina left lingering scars two years ago.

From NOLA.com, the site of the New Orleans Times-Picayune:

Louisiana voters chose Bobby Jindal to be their next governor Saturday, handing the 36-year-old Republican wunderkind an electoral prize that eluded him four years ago after a low-key race yielded a historic victory.

By winning more than 50 percent of the primary vote against a field of 12 candidates, Jindal became the first candidate to win an open gubernatorial seat since Louisiana adopted its all-party "jungle" non-partisan primary system in 1975 and the first member of a racial minority to become the state's chief executive since Reconstruction.

From Aziz Haniffa of Rediff/India Abroad, who has covered Jindal more closely than any other South Asian journalist:

An elated Jindal with his wife Supriya by his side, who was holding their three-year-old son, at the election party in the ballroom of the Holiday Inn  Select in Baton Rouge, exclaimed, "Thank you, thank you, thank you, Louisiana,"  and then declared, "Folks, I have got a great idea. Let's give our homeland, our  great state of Louisiana a fresh start."

And then thanking his wife, said, "As anyone who knows me knows, there's no  Bobby without Supriya,"

From Aaman Lamba, blogging at Desicritics.org:

Piyush "Bobby" Jindal also capitalized on support from the Indian-American community, who cut across party lines to support someone they saw as embodying their political aspirations. <snip>
His political stance is stridently to the right, having stated he is "100% against abortion, no exceptions", being pro-intelligent design, and having voted the party line almost entirely. Democrats opposed his campaign on various grounds, including questionable campaign contributions, but their own post-Katrina incompetence and corruption made this stand a hard one to defend.

See roundup of front pages. More to come. Post your comments below.

Earlier on SAJAforum:

• Live Blogging the Results (Oct. 20, 2007)
• Election Day in Louisiana (Oct. 20, 2007)
• Bobby Jindal's Guv Bid in NYT (Oct. 19, 2007)
• Are Democrats Playing the Race Card With Bobby Jindal (Jan 31, 2007)

Comments

[Ven Parameswaran, Scarsdale, New York]

Let me first congratulate Governor-elect Bobby Jindal. Bobby has made us very proud. At 32 he was elected to Congress, and now at 36 to Governorship. Bobby is highly educated and a born leader and communicator. I have met him several times during the past five years and he is very humble. Bobby has the potential to become President of the USA. I am sure Bobby will reconstruct and modernize Louisiana and of course New Orleans. Bobby, as Governor, can bring about solution to health care problem because of his rich experience. But for the dirty politics, Bobby could have been elected Governor four years ago. He lost only by two points.

[Steve M.]

The Indians are coming. Hopefully New Orleans will get more attention and
respect from the White House.

[turbanhead]

Ladies get your abortions while you can! And oh yes, throw out them science textbooks that discuss evolution.

[Shrimpy]

turbanhead says it best

[A N N A]

I think it's easy to be glib and cynical, difficult to admit that someone whom we may not agree with or like has done something impressive.

[Indu Jagannathan]

Wow! Simply superb.
Seems like the world is getting to become a single village. Truly global.
Can we call this an integration of humanity into a whole unit of brotherhood?
India has the maturity to be controlled by people of Italian origin. Now, America is proving that it would allow people of Indian (can we extend it to non-european) origin lead them.

[bobby sucks.]

I am brown just like Bobby and I could care less that he won.

Does that make me less brown?

Heck no.

[Sanjay]

Why is everyone cheering the ascendancy of this Rice Christian into a Ballot Christian?
This moron wants to ban abortion and see Creationism taught in the classrooms. As an atheist, I'll say that converts are the worst zealots. Republicans like it when they can turn Macacas like him into their ethnic tokens. The Trophy Convert.

[Dr. Brahman Sivaprakasapillai]

Many congratulations to Bobby Jindal.
I can only find that a Canadian born woman was elected as Governor in Michigan and that a Scttish born man elected as Governor in Alabama. Other than this I cannot find governors of Asian origin in the 50 contiguous states.

[Najma Sultana]

This New Yorker says mazel to Governor Booby Jindal, He and Supria made us proud as Indians by winning a race of this beleagured State.He has mountains to climb,he inherited a Mess,I admire his courage to take on Lousiana's Leadership at this critical junction.I wish him well.
I am a Democrat, I am still happy an Indian Republican won the race fair and square!

[Lila Rajiva]

I read that Jindal is extremely competent. In fact, brilliant.
So, congratulations to Louisiana for seeing past race to elect him.

His stance on abortion is the Catholic one, and while it is not mine, it is that of many people - they have the right to set the standards in their communities.

My main difficulty with the man is his support for teaching creationism in the classroom. While I see nothing wrong with student-sponsored prayer groups, religious study, and the teaching of religious history in the class, the outright teaching of any particular "religious" theory of creation with the endorsement of the school would amount to an establishment of religion in the public sphere.

There is enough research coming out on the mind body connection (the role of positive emotions and religious belief on the immune system, for example) - that we can teach spiritual practices without violating the separation of church and state. Ethics can also be taught as part of philosophy and with reference to religious ethics in the classroom.

But,let's wait and see how Jindal negotiates all that. He might be sensitive to the nuances.

Ultimately, it's still a victory for racial tolerance and for competence in politics.

[panditjugalkishoreshastri]

YEEEEEHAAAAAA

BALLE BALLE

WAHUN WAHUN

SHAAVA SHAAVA

[K Velki]

I am visiting India and I am surprised that no Indian newspaper that I have seen today (Sunday) has anything about Jindal in its print editions. The only exception is THE TELEGRAPH which has a story that is clearly written to spoil the victorious mood among Indian Americans. Even the web sites of Indian newspapers started reporting about Jindal only quite late. Maybe they were all tired from fasting for the weeklong Indian Navratri festival.--K. Velki
http://www.telegraphindia.com/1071021/asp/frontpage/story_8458494.asp#top

Katrina wind in Jindal sails
- Indian leads governor race
K.P. NAYAR

Washington, Oct. 20: The merciless winds from
Hurricane Katrina which devastated New Orleans two
years ago may today put the first Indian American
governor in office.

Barring a sudden upset as Louisiana voters trek to
polling booths today, Republican Bobby Jindal may be
elected governor of the state which only 16 years ago
nearly chose a former leader of the dreaded Ku Klux
Klan for that office.

Jindal is way ahead of his nearly one dozen rivals in
all the polls. But he needs an outright 50 per cent of
the ballots cast today to avoid a second round of
voting in November.

Under Louisiana’s peculiar electoral system, anyone
can contest the polls and does not have to be
nominated by a party unlike as in other states.

As a result, Jindal is facing several Democrats, three
among them serious contenders for the governor’s
office.

If Jindal fails to win 50 per cent of the ballots cast
today, he will fight the Democrat who won the highest
number of votes in a second round of polling. All
other candidates will be eliminated from the race.

While a victory today may be sweet revenge for Jindal,
who lost to a Democrat in 2003, he will, if elected,
inherit a state that is more akin to a Third World
country than the US.

In per capita terms, Louisiana is now America’s
poorest state. It is teeming with uneducated people, a
large number of them barely literate or illiterate.

Health problems are rampant and have multiplied in the
aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, and infant mortality
is a serious problem that will confront Jindal, who
was appointed by President George W. Bush in his first
term as America’s youngest assistant secretary of the
department of health and human services.

A large percentage of Louisiana’s population is still
living outside the state as refugees from Hurricane
Katrina.

Police brutality has become so common in New Orleans
that it no longer makes news on TV here. Corruption
and moral decay among the state’s incumbent leaders
have made some cases of Third World corruption look
more respectable.

Among the worst cases now making news in Louisiana is
the indictment of William Jefferson, a Democratic
Congressman, from whose freezer $90,000 in alleged
bribe money was recovered by the FBI.

Louisiana’s Republican Senator David Vitter is
commonly known as “Vitter the Shitter”, a nickname
given to him by sex workers in New Orleans because of
some perversions he allegedly forced these women into
while patronising them, according to widespread
accounts of the senator’s escapades on the Internet.

Given this backdrop of Louisiana politics, Jindal’s
advantage is that he is in the race as a relatively
fresh face, a conservative Roman Catholic who was born
into a Hindu household with the name Piyush that was
given by his parents.

Louisiana governor Kathleen Blanco, who defeated
Jindal in 2003, portrayed the Indian American as an
intellectual who was far removed from the concerns of
the state’s ordinary people.

One of Blanco’s most effective advertisements against
Jindal then had the theme “Bobby Jindal has no heart”.

But today, Louisiana, fed up with ordinary
politicians, is looking for a miracle from someone
like Jindal, a Rhodes scholar who reformed the state’s
Medicare system at the age of 24 and became head of
the Louisiana State University system when he was just
28.

He became a member of the US House of Representatives
at the age of 33 and is touting his two terms in the
US Congress as experience worthy of leading Louisiana.

If elected, Jindal will become this country’s youngest
state governor now in office. He will also become the
first non-white to lead Louisiana since the
Reconstruction 130 years ago.

Blanco, who is not seeking re-election, has seen her
popularity plummet over the mismanagement of relief
efforts after Hurricane Katrina.

[Surendra Kaushik]

India and Indians are shining and growing on the foundations of education, public engagement, democratic traditions and capacity for leadership. Bobby Jindal, like a Gokhle, Malviya, Gandhi, Nehru, Patel is using his education and persistence in public service just as Tata, Murthy, Nilekani, Mittal are using their education to excel in business. Two-thirds of Indians in the United States have higher education compared with 4.5 percent in India. Access to more education and a sense of service to the larger community will continue to increase leadership by Indians at home and around the globe. Hearty congratulations to Bobby Jindal to be one of the 50 Governors.

[Surendra Kaushik]

Bobby Jindal continues the tradition of education-based leadership and public service so well exemplified by Gokhle, Malviya, Gandhi, Nehru, Patel in politics and Tata, Murthy, Nilekani, Ambani, Mittal in business. Access to more education and a sense of community service coupled with persistence and hard work are producing leaders among Indians at home and abroad. Only 4.5 percent of people in India have achieved higher education compared with 67 percent of Indians in the United States. Mahatma Gandhi remains the best example of using his education and a sense of purpose and community service. It is a great day in the history of Indian people around the globe when one of the 25 million outside India is among a select group of 50 heads of the great American states. Hearty congratulations to Bobby Jindal and all good wishes for a successful Jindal administration In Louisiana.

[Jaya Kamlani]

Tear down the "party" walls. At this time, it matters not if you are a Republican or a Democrat. Let's all celebrate Bobby Jindal's victory and wish him well. He has a lot of challenges facing him.

Congratulations and Good Luck Bobby.

Jaya Kamlani

[Vikas]

An incredibly smart person deservedly won the race. His brown skin and that his parents originated from India is just a co-incident; now can everyone please stop hyperventilating?

In this reddest of the red states, residents of Louisiana embraced someone who definitely doesn't look like them, just because they thought that he is the best person person to lead them. It says a lot more about the US than it does about Indian-Americans or India. The US society is truly a melting pot and both India and Indians in the US can learn a lot from this instead of turning this win into a victory for Indian expatriates everywhere in the world.

[Jaya Kamlani]

Vikas,

I absolutely agree with you when you say: "In this reddest of the red states, residents of Louisiana embraced someone who definitely doesn't look like them ... It says a lot more about the US than it does about Indian-Americans or India...."

Yes, I would certainly say that Americans are more accepting of people than Indians are. Americans truly appreciate hard-working, skilled and talented people, regardless of their race, religion, or color. This is what America is about. Sooner or later you are appreciated for your talent.

By the way Vikas, it's okay if people hyperventilate. Like we have expressed our appreciation and congratulations, let others also have an opportunity to express their thoughts. It is at times like these that many people come together.

Jaya Kamlani

[Sanjay]

I'm not going to celebrate someone's victory just because they have the same skin colour as me. I'm not racially obsessed, like some people on this site. I'll celebrate the victory of someone who has the same values as me -- which this guy doesn't.

He's an anti-choice creationist redneck trophy convert for the Christian Right. He's no mere Indian Tom -- he's a sepoy. MacCaulay would be proud.

[Vikas Chowdhry]

Sanjay -

Can you point to any news articles where the Christian Right is touting Mr. Jindal as "exhibit A - a Hindoo who saved himself by accepting Jesus Christ"? I doubt it.

As for his anti-choice credentials, maybe residents of the north Indian states like Haryana, Punjab and Rajasthan could do with some anti-choice candidates like Mr. Jindal, if the female abortion figures are anything to go by.

Jaya - thanks for the endorsement of my views.

[Jaya Kamlani]

Sanjay,

We have to be more accepting of people in this world. We too have our own faults. What if you were born in a Christian family, or were born in a war-torn country where your family had to convert to survive? Should your friends like you less then? No. You are who you are as a person, not as a representative of a certain religion.

As a woman, I am pro-choice. But does that mean I am against those who are pro-life and against abortion? No. Because these people value every life. Everyone is entitled to their choices, and they have their reasons for their preferences. I too value every life, but sometimes you have women who are raped, or forced into some circumstances, or due to their poor health they must have abortion. Under such circumstances, abortion is alright. But to have abortion like they have in India, because of sex-selection, because they would like to give birth to boys and abort the girls... I am against such abortions. In such situations, I am pro-life.

Sanjay, just because a person has learned to balance his life between all races, you don't have to call him an Indian Tom. In Louisiana, you have many minorities too, where Bobby Jindal is widely accepted. However, one fact remains, and that is if you don't like the whites, you cannot be elected to any office in the U.S., because you will be seen as a racist. No white will give you his/her vote. So, it is better that we accept others as we would like them to accept us, else we will get nowhere, not as CEOs, governors or senators, much less as any official in the government or director of a company.

Jaya Kamlani

[Srinivasa Raghavan]

Congratulations to Governor Jindal.

While I don't agree with his views, and glad he isn't the governor of the state where I live, its still an accomplishment that he broke the color barrier in one of the most conservative states to become governor. Granted, he's a bit of an uncle tom, or Uncle Ram as the case may be, but he probably did what he had to do to be elected. This entire conversion of his name and religion may have been nothing more than a calculated move to gain power. If so, then hats off to Mr. Jindal. WHo knows, in reality Mr. Jindal may just espouse the views he thinks that people want to see in his state, and he may end up being a fair-minded governor yet. In any event, seeing as the electorate of LA would have likely chosen some flaming reactionary anyway, better an Indian reactionary than a non-Indian one.

[Ram Das]

The Republicans are now going to parade this rice christian at all fund raising events to squeeze money out of Indians for the next elections.

P.S: If there is another katrina not just Jindal but all indians will be lynched

[Jaya Kamlani]

Ram Das,

Please take a look at all the fundraising articles on Hillary Clinton on this SAJA Forum. In fact there are no fund raising articles on Republicans that have been posted here – at least none that I can recall, and none listed under the “Presidential Race” category.

EDUCATION: IIT ALUMNI GATHER IN CALIFORNIA - AND SO DOES THE PRESS

PREZ POLITICS: BAL DAS, "A QUIET RAINMAKER"

POLITICS: HILLARY TAKES IN $2 MILLION AT INDIAN-AMERICAN FUNDRAISER

POLITICS: HILLARY COURTS THE INDIAN VOTE, AND PURSE

POLITICS: NYT & WP EXAMINE INFOUSA-CLINTON CONNECTION

POLITICS: DESI SUPPORTERS OF OBAMA AND CLINTON (Fundraising campaigns by Hillary Clinton & Obama… This one has scores of comments)

So please tell me who is squeezing money out of Indians at fundraising events. Therefore, if the Democrats can raise money from Indians, why can’t the Republicans? I have come across many Indians who are Republicans too; almost as many as there are Democrats.

Also, please don’t pick on any religion. One religion is as good as another. The real character of a person lies within himself, and not the religion he/she is associated with. As a Hindu, I am glad I attended a convent school in India, because it taught me respect for all religions, and respect for every human being.

Jaya Kamlani

[Chaitanya Diwadkar]

Is this truly something to be proud of? This is not a proud moment for Indian-Americans - it is a continuing, sad and horrendous commentary on the state of this nation and should be a depressing moment for all Americans with a conscience. As an American of Indian descent I feel I owe an apology to the people of Louisiana!!