A Democrat of Native Hawai'ian and Chinese ancestry, Senator Akaka has served in the United States Senate since 1990. Appointed to the Senate in April 1990 and sworn into office on May 16, 1990, Senator Akaka handily won a spirited special election in November 1990 to complete the unexpired four-year term of the late Senator Spark M. Matsunaga.
He was re-elected in both 1994 and 2000 by wide margins. In the Senate, he serves on the Armed Services, Energy and Natural Resources, Governmental Affairs (GAC), Veterans' Affairs, and Indian Affairs committees. He is a leader in renewable energy research and development; park and wildlife issues; tropical agriculture and coral reef conservation; ocean sciences and technology; aquaculture research; and marine protection and environmental preservation.
As Chair of the GAC International Security, Proliferation, and Federal Services Subcommittee, he has taken a leading role in a number of critical national security areas and is a champion for the interests of Federal employees and retirees. In the Pacific region, he has closely monitored the safety and security of shipments of radioactive mixed plutonium-uranium, oxide (MOX) fuel from Europe to Japan for nuclear power purposes. He is also known as an advocate for veterans, working to improve services and increase employment and housing opportunities for the men and women who have served in our nation's Armed Services, and as a champion of the rights of indigenous peoples.
Re-elected as State Delegate, Maryland's 17th District
Kumar Barve
First elected in 1990, and re-elected for the fourth time in 2006, Delegate Kumar P. Barve is the Majority Leader in Maryland's state legislature and is the longest-serving elected official of Indian origin. He represents a district with a population of 110,000 in Montgomery County, and is known for his sharp wit, self-effacing sense of humor, and deep commitment to his community.
Aside from serving as Majority Leader of the Maryland House, Delegate Barve chairs the Science and Technology Sub-Committee of the House Committee on Economic Matters. Among his legislative accomplishments are introduction of the Patient Access Act (the first bill in the nation to regulate HMOs) and sponsorship of the Maryland law that banned insurance companies from using pre-existing conditions to deny coverage.
Del. Barve's grandfather, Shankar L. Gokhale, immigrated to the United States from India in 1911. Barve's mother, Neera, was born in Schenectady, New York. His father, Prabhakar Barve, came to the U.S. in 1957 after studying architecture in England.
In 1987, Ben was elected to represent Maryland's 3rd Congressional District in the U.S. House of Representatives. In 2006, he was elected to represent Maryland in the United States Senate by a ten point margin over his opponent.
As a senior member of the House Ways & Means Committee and ranking member of the Trade Subcommittee and the Helsinki Commission, Ben has been a national leader on issues such as health care, Social Security, retirement savings, trade and human rights.
Ben's foremost passion in Congress has been to improve our health care system to give more Americans access to quality care. He has put those principles into action by authoring meaningful laws to expand Medicare to cover preventive benefits such as screenings for breast cancer, prostate cancer and osteoporosis. He is expected to continue his leadership on this issue as his six-year term in the Senate begins.
FMR. STATE ASSEMBLYWOMAN
Wilma Chan(D-California)
Won State Assembly seat in California's District 16 in 2000
Wilma Chan
Formerly the President of the Alameda County Board of Supervisors, Rep. Chan won a landslide victory of more than 67% of the vote to win an assembly seat in California's District 16 (Oakland, Alameda, and Piedmont) in 2000. She served as the California Assembly Majority Leader from 2002-2004, the first woman and the first Asian American to hold that position. She continued representing the 16th district from 2000 to 2006 before being termed out, and is now running for the California State Senate District 9 seat that is currently held by Senate President Pro Tem Don Perata.
Rep. Chan led several trade delegations to Asia to encourage business development. Her legislative priorities included health care, senior services, early childhood education, environmental health and sustainable economic development.
Re-elected to State Senate, Minnesota's District 50
Satveer
Chaudhary
Senator Chaudhary is the highest-ranking Indian American elected official in the United States, the first Asian American elected in Minnesota's history and the youngest State Senator in Minnesota. State Senator Chaudhary was first elected in 1996 and currently serves on five committees, including Capital Investment, Crime Prevention and Public Safety, Transportation Policy and Budget Division. He was elected Majority Whip in the Minnesota Senate and serves as Vice-chair of the Finance Committee.
Mr. Chaudhary has devoted most of his legislative career to issues of education, judicial matters, and civil and family law. Graduating from St. Olaf College with a Bachelor's Degree in Political Science, Satveer Chaudhary went on to receive a law degree at the University of Minnesota Law School. In his role as a public servant, Mr. Chaudhary has become a leader and a pioneer for the Midwestern Indian American community.
John Chiang, the highest ranking Asian Pacific American in California state government, serves as State Controller. Prior to that he served from 1997 to 2007 as a member of the California State Board of Equalization, where he represented the 4th Equalization District, which is comprised of 8.5 million residents in Los Angeles County. As Chairman of the State Board of Equalization and a member of the Franchise Tax Board, he already was the highest-ranking Asian Pacific American elected state official in California.
With a degree in Finance from the University of South Florida and a law degree from Georgetown University Law Center, John arrived in Los Angeles in 1987 and began work as a tax law specialist for the IRS. He also has served as an attorney and staff member to many high-ranking California officials, including Senator Barbara Boxer.
Among the current and former non-profit groups he has served are the Children's Law Center, the Ethnic Coalition (an organization dedicated to building harmonious race relations), Planned Parenthood Los Angeles, and the Organization of Chinese Americans.
Re-elected as State Representative, Iowa's District 36
Swati Dandekar
In 2006, Representative Swati Dandekar comfortably retained her Iowa assembly seat representing District 36. She defeated a Republican newcomer with a 10 per cent margin. As a one-term representative, the Republicans had targeted her for a possible upset, and pumped money into the race. Rep. Dandekar fought back by campaigning vigorously, despite the demands on her time imposed by work on several legislative committees. In the final talley, she received 9,772 votes (54.4 per cent) versus 8,192 votes (45.6 per cent) for her opponent in a district encompassing 20,000 voters.
In 2002, Rep. Swati Dandekar made history when she became the first Asian American to be elected to a state position in Iowa. A dedicated public servant, Swati has always looked out for the residents of her district. She has served on the Appropriations, Economic Growth, and International Relations committees, and convinced her peers to create Iowa's first Asian American commission, funded through an unique public-private partnership.
Swati has been an active member of her community for thirty years. She has served on the board of the Greater Cedar Rapids Foundation and the Junior League of Cedar Rapids, as well as the local and state boards of education. She has won many awards for her work, including the local Linn-Mar Foundation Wall of Fame, Asian Alliance of Iowa "Person of the Year," and India Abroad "Person of the Year" Award.
Elected as State Representative, Ohio's 73rd District
Jay Goyal
In November 2006, Jay Goyal, at age 26, defeated Phillip Holloway in the 73rd District to win a seat in the Ohio state House. He polled 63 percent of the vote to his rival's 36 percent.
Jay Goyal represents Ohio's 73rd District and serves on the Financial Institutions, Real Estate and Securities; Healthcare Access and Affordability; Public Utilities; and Ways and Means committees. Prior to his election in 2006, he served as Vice President of Goyal Industries, a manufacturing firm that specializes in products for the mass transit and passenger rail car industry nationwide.
Goyal sits on the Board of Directors for the Rehabilitation Center of North Central Ohio, Junior Achievement of North Central Ohio, and the University and College Access Network. He serves on the United Way's Allocations and Community Relations Committees, the Richland County Citizens' Vision Board, and Progress Industries Business Advisory Board. He is also active with the Mansfield Indian Association, the Ohio Marwari Association and the Mansfield-Richland Chamber of Commerce.
Prior to her election to Congress from Hawaii in 2006, Mazie Keiko Hirono served two 4-years terms as Hawaii's Lt. Governor, becoming America's first immigrant woman of Asian ancestry elected to statewide office. In Congress, she serves on the Committee on Education and Labor and the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure.
Educated in public schools in Hawaii, she graduated with honors from Kaimuki High School and Phi Beta Kappa from the University of Hawaii at Manoa. She earned her law degree from Georgetown University Law Center in Washington, D.C.
She served as a Deputy Attorney General in the Antitrust Division and later practiced law in the private sector with the firm of Shim, Tam, Kirimitsu, Kitamura and Chang. Prior to her election as Lt. Governor, Hirono served for 14 years in the Hawaii State Legislature and earned a reputation as a dedicated consumer advocate and outspoken member and a founder of the House Women's Caucus. Over 120 of her bills became law, making her one of the most effective members of the Legislature during her 7 terms.
Mike Honda, the President of the AAA-Fund Honorary Board of Directors, was elected to represent California's 15th Congressional District in 2000. He also serves as Chair of the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus, Vice Chair of the Democratic National Committee, and House Democratic Senior Whip. He serves on the Appropriations Committee, with postings on that body's Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education, Commerce, Justice, and Science, and Legislative Branch Subcommittees.
Mike was born in California, but spent his early childhood with his family in an internment camp in Colorado during World War II. His family returned to California in 1953, becoming strawberry sharecroppers in San Jose. In 1965, Mike interrupted his college studies to answer President John F. Kennedy's call for volunteer service. He served in the Peace Corps for two years in El Salvador, returning with a passion for teaching and fluent in Spanish.
Mike earned Bachelor's degrees in Biological Sciences and Spanish, and a Master's degree in Education from San José State University. He has worked as a science teacher, principal at two public schools, education researcher at Stanford University, and member of the California State Assembly (1996 to 2000).
In November 2005, with the help of the AAA-Fund and many other allies, Tim Kaine was elected Governor of Virginia. He previously had served as Virginia's Lieutenant Governor and as member of the City Council and Mayor of Richmond. Prior to his election as Lieutenant Governor, Tim was an award-winning lawyer, whose legal career focused on fair housing advocacy, advising local governments and small business representation.
Tim graduated from the University of Missouri and Harvard Law School. During law school, he took a one-year leave of absence to work with Catholic missionaries as the principal of the Instituto Tecnico Loyola, a vocational school teaching carpentry and welding to teenagers in El Progreso, Honduras. Although not Asian American himself, he is strongly supportive of Asian American issues, and hired Asian Americans to significant campaign and administration posts.
Re-elected as State Delegate, Maryland's 16th District
Susan Lee
Maryland State Delegate Susan Lee, who had been appointed to fill a vacancy, was elected to a full term representing District 16 on November 5, 2002 and re-elected in 2006. Del. Lee, a longtime community activist, civil rights attorney, and product of the Montgomery County public schools, serves as Deputy Majority Whip, Member of the Judiciary Committee, Chair of the Juvenile Law subcommittee, and House Chair of the Identity Theft Task Force. She is Vice-Chair of the Montgomery County Delegation and is a member of the Maryland Green Caucus, Maryland Bicycle and Pedestrian Caucus, Women Legislators of Maryland, and National Conference of State Legislatures (communications, technology & interstate commerce committee). She is the first Asian American woman to serve in the Maryland General Assembly.
Prior to her service in the Assembly, Del. Lee served as a Member of the Montgomery County Democratic Central Committee, as well as founder and Chair of the Coalition of Asian Pacific American Democrats of Maryland, the state's first and largest Asian Pacific American Democratic organization.
She has received awards from MADD and Progressive Maryland. Endorsers during her campaigns have included the Washington Post, Maryland State Teachers Association, Montgomery County Education Association, Harriet's List, Maryland NARAL, Sierra Club, Action Committee on Transit, and Metropolitan Washington Council AFL-CIO.
Re-Elected to California State Assembly, District 53
Ted Lieu
Ted Lieu was elected to represent California's 53rd Assembly District (near Los Angeles) in a Special Election in September 2005, and re-elected to a full term in November 2006. He currently serves on the Banking & Finance; Health; Natural Resources; and Water, Parks & Wildlife committees. He also was appointed Chair of the Assembly's Select Committee on Aerospace.
Prior his election to the State Assembly, Lieu served on the Torrance City Council, as well as the City's Environmental Quality & Energy Conservation Commission. He currently holds the rank of Major in the United States Air Force Reserves, and served on active duty for four years as a member of the JAG Corps. He earned both B.S. and B.A. degrees from Stanford University, and a J.D. with honors from Georgetown University Law Center, where he was Editor-in-Chief of the Law Review.
Re-elected to the State Assembly, California's 44th District in 2004
Carol Liu
Carol Liu (D-La Cañada Flintridge) was elected to represent the 44th Assembly District in November of 2000 and again in 2002 and 2004. She was term limited from running again in 2006, but she has announced plans to run for a State Senate seat in 2008.
A fifth-generation Californian on her mother's side, and the child of an immigrant father, Liu was born in Berkeley and raised in Oakland. She attended public schools, graduated from San Jose State College, and earned teaching and administrative credentials from the University of California, Berkeley School of Education.
Carol's number one priority as a member of the Assembly was restoring California's public education system to be among the best in the nation. As Chair of the Assembly Higher Education Committee, she worked to ensure that all Californians had access to higher education. She also was Vice Chair of the Committee to Develop a Master Plan for Education and Chair of the Select Committee on Adult Education. For her efforts, she was named "Legislator of the Year" by many student, university and other groups over the years.
GOVERNOR
Gary Locke(D-Washington)
Won Governor's office in Washington
Gary Locke
Gary Locke was elected Washington's 21st governor on Nov. 5, 1996, making him the first Chinese-American governor in U.S. history. As governor, he worked to make Washington public schools the best in the nation, promote jobs and economic development in rural and urban areas, and fight juvenile crime. On Nov. 7, 2000, the governor was re-elected to his second term. In January 2005, he left office and joined a Seattle-based international law firm.
Born into an immigrant family on Jan. 21, 1950, Gary spent his first six years in Seattle's Yesler Terrace, a public housing project for families of World War II veterans. His father, James Locke, served in the 5th Armored Division of the U.S. Army under General George Patton and landed on the beaches of Normandy shortly after D-Day. Following the war, James Locke met his wife, Julie, in Hong Kong and settled in Seattle, where they raised their five children.
Gary worked in his father's grocery store. He worked hard, became an Eagle Scout, and graduated with honors from Seattle's Franklin High School in 1968. Then, through a combination of part-time jobs, financial aid and scholarships, Gary attended Yale University, where he received his bachelor's degree in political science in 1972. After earning a law degree from Boston University in 1975, he worked for several years as a deputy prosecutor in King County, prosecuting people for crimes such as robbery and murder.
In 1982, he was elected to the Washington State House of Representatives, where he served on the House Judiciary and Appropriations committees, with his final five years as chairman of the House Appropriations Committee. As chairman, he negotiated bi-partisan budgets that increased college and university enrollments, improved children's health-care services, and strengthened environmental protections. He was elected chief executive of King County in 1993 and took on all of the challenges facing Washington's most complex urban area. During his term, he cut the budget, expanded transit services, established a program to reward county departments for saving money, and developed a nationally acclaimed growth management plan.
Re-elected as State Senator, Minnesota's 67th District
Mee Moua
Mee Moua, first elected in January of 2002 and decisively re-elected in 2002 and 2006, is the first Hmong American nationwide to be elected to a state legislative office. She is an attorney and community leader in St. Paul, Minnesota. Born in war-torn Laos in 1969, she escaped to Thailand with her family at the age of five and lived in a refugee camp before resettling in Rhode Island.
Sen. Moua attended Brown University, the University of Texas LBJ School of Public Affairs and the University of Minnesota Law school, receiving MPA and law degrees. She settled in St. Paul with her family in 1988.
As a state senator representing District 67, Sen. Moua is Chair of the powerful Judiciary Committee and serves as a member of the Finance, Transportation and Taxes committees.
Born and raised in Delaware County, former three-star Vice Admiral Joe Sestak was elected to represent Pennsylvania's 7th District in November 2006. This is the District where he and his seven siblings grew up, where he voted throughout his military career, and where he recently returned after completing his military service to our country.
Joe graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy, and spent the last 31 years serving in the U.S. Navy. After 9/11, Joe was the first Director of "Deep Blue," the Navy's anti-terrorism unit for the "Global War on Terrorism." Joe also served as President Clinton's Director for Defense Policy at the National Security Council in the White House. Between tours of duty at sea, he earned a Ph.D. in Political Economy and Government from Harvard University.
Joe included Asian Pacific Americans in his core campaign team, and made outreach to the local Asian Pacific American community a key part of his campaign. He has dedicated himself to improving the health, education and economic security of Asian Pacific Americans, and all Americans.
Re-elected as State Representative, Minnesota's District 65A
Cy Thao
Community activist Cy Thao was born in Laos, lived five years in a refugee camp, and raised in Minnesota. He graduated from the University of Minnesota in Morris with degrees in political science and studio art. Endorsed by the St. Paul Pioneer Press and the Minneapolis Star, he also earned the support and endorsement of a broad spectrum of groups, including the Democratic-Farmer-Labor (DFL) Party, Progressive Minnseota, the AFL-CIO, Minnesota NARAL, and the Sierra Club. He was elected to his first term as State Representative with 81% of the votes in 2002, re-elected with 76% in 2004, and re-elected again in 2006 with 80% of the vote.
Mr. Thao has worked as an actor, art instructor, and public school teacher, and served as Executive Director of the Center for Hmong Arts and Talent in St. Paul. Married and the father of a young child, he co-founded Community Action Against Racism and other groups that help refugees and others living in his community.
Elected as State Representative, Connecticut's District 147
William Tong
On November 7, 2006, attorney William Tong wom 53% of the vote to become the first Asian Pacific American elected at the state level in Connecticut's history. He will represent the 147th District, which includes parts of Stamford and New Canaan.
The son of Chinese restaurant owners, William attended public and private schools in West Hartford. He was fortunate to graduate from Phillips Academy Andover, and later distinguished himself at Brown University and The University of Chicago Law School. Because of his parents' example and inspiration, William has dedicated himself to serving working people just like them. From his efforts in college to defend alleged juvenile offenders for the Public Defender Service of Washington, D.C., to his pro bono representation of women seeking protection for themselves and their children, to his ongoing service as a member of the Board of Directors for one of Fairfield County’s leading social service organizations, Person-to-Person, William has shown that a lawyer in private practice can still make time to serve the community.
FMR. UNITED STATES REPRESENTATIVE
Robert Underwood
Won election in 2000 as Guam Representative
Robert Underwood
Robert Underwood completed five terms in the House of Representatives in 2002. Serving as Guam's all purpose representative in Washington, D.C., he not only worked on legislative matters for Guam, but also utilized his considerable skills to tell the Guam story to the nation's capital. Acknowledged as Guam's third most powerful and influential person by Latte magazine in February 2000, the Congressman was characterized as "an intelligent man with a gift for public speaking" who is a "tireless promoter of Guam's right to self-determination."
Following an impressive career as an educator, beginning as a high school teacher in 1972 and culminating with the academic vice presidency of Guam's university, Representative Underwood was first elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 1992. Virtually unopposed, he easily won reelection in 1994, 1996, 1998, and 2000. In 2002, he entered private life and has worked as a consultant and speaker on issues related to Guam and Asian Pacific Americans.
Elected as State Delegate, Maryland's 26th District
Kris Valderrama
Elected in November 2006 to represent Maryland's 26th District, Kris Valderrama serves on the Judiciary Committee and the Juvenile Law subcommittee. One of the few second generation Asian Pacific American politicians, she is the eldest daughter of former Maryland Delegate David Valderrama.
A proud product of the Prince George's County public school system, where she graduated from Oxon Hill Senior High School, Delegate Valderrama earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Respiratory Therapy from Salisbury State University, in Salisbury, Maryland.
Following her career in the health care field, she worked for the 1.4 million member American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME), AFL-CIO in their Public Affairs Department's Strategic Communications Unit, working on such issues as child care, home care and health care organizing.
Kris can be seen weekly on Valderrama's America on Comcast channel 80 in Maryland and Comcast channel 77 in Washington, DC, co-hosting, reporting and interviewing politicians and community leaders on issues of interest to Prince George's County.
Re-elected as State Representative, Texas's District 149
Hubert Vo
Hubert Vo is the first person of Vietnamese heritage to be elected to the Texas Legislature, where he serves on the Business and Industry and Border and International Affairs committees and was named Freshman of the Year by the non-partisan Legislative Study Group.
Rep. Vo, a successful businessman, has been a member of the Alief community for over 20 years. He is a council member of Alief Super Neighborhood, Alief YMCA Board, a member of the Houston Association of Realtors, Houston Association of Builders, Vietnamese Chamber of Commerce, Houston Apartment Association, Harris County Democrats, West Houston Democrats, Braeswood Democrats and Tejano Democrats.
Rep. Vo attended the University of Houston during the day and worked at Hughes Tool Company as a steel worker at night. In 1983, he graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in Mechanical Engineering. He went on to open a computer business and establish several commercial real estate ventures. As a legislator, he has served on both the Border & International Affairs and Business & Industry Committees, and was honored for his relief efforts on behalf of displaced Hurricane Katrina victims.
On November 7, 2006, Jim Webb upset incumbent Republican Senator George Allen in one of the most stunning victories of the 2006 campaign cycle. His win allowed the Democrats to wrest control of the Senate from the Republicans, and sent a strong anti-war message to President Bush.
Senator Webb was aided in his efforts by many Asian Pacific Americans, including Real Virginians for Webb, which is continuing as an ongoing group called Real Americans for Democracy. RVFW coordinated the leafletting, phone-banking, and other efforts of the AAA-Fund and other groups to help mobilize the Asian Pacific American vote in northern Virginia.
Jim graduated from the Naval Academy and was first in his class at the Marine Corps Officer's Basic School. He was a rifle platoon and company commander in Vietnam, and awarded the Navy Cross, the Silver Star Medal, two Bronze Star Medals, and two Purple Hearts. He received his law degree from Georgetown University, taught literature at the Naval Academy, and traveled worldwide as a journalist. He served in the U.S. Congress as counsel to the House Committee on Veterans Affairs from 1977 to 1981. He was appointed Assistant Secretary of Defense for Reserve Affairs in 1984, and served as Secretary of the Navy from 1987-1988.
Representative Wu, the only Chinese American member of the House of Representatives, was elected to represent Oregon's 1st Congressional District in 1998 and was re-elected to his fifth term in 2006. He is on the Executive Board of the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus, and is a member of the House Committee on Education and Labor Committee, the Science and Technology Committee, and the Foreign Affairs Committee. He is Chair of the Science and Technology Subcommittee on Technology and Innovation.
Representative Wu is living proof that the American dream still thrives today. He was born in Taiwan on April 8, 1955. In October of 1961, David and his family moved to the United States from Taiwan after President John F. Kennedy signed an executive order updating unfair immigration quotas. He was educated in public schools, earned a Bachelor of Science from Stanford University, attended Harvard Medical School, and received a law degree from Yale University.
In a recent term as Chairperson of CAPAC, Rep. Wu significantly expanded the caucus' membership, ensuring that more members of Congress are aware of the APA community's needs. He also worked to get the APA community more involved in the electoral process, through increased voter turnout and by helping APAs who are seeking elective office.
In November 2005, Sam Yoon won an At Large seat on the Boston City Council, becoming the first Asian Pacific American ever to hold elective office in Boston. Born in Seoul, South Korea, he came to this country with his parents when he was only ten months old. At ten years old, he became a naturalized U. S. citizen. He attended Princeton University, where he earned a teaching license along with a Bachelor's degree in philosophy. He subsequently taught in two of New Jersey's most troubled public school systems before moving to Boston to earn his Master's Degree in Public Administration at Harvard's John F. Kennedy School of Government.
Building on his work for the Asian Community Development Corporation (ACDC), Boston Aging Concerns, and the Community Builders (the nation's largest non-profit developer of affordable housing), Sam has made economic development, public education, affordable housing, and public safety the centerpieces of his work. He serves on the Education, Human Rights, New Bostonians, PILOT Agreements (Special Cte.), and Youth Affairs committees.
