[ad_1]
Narendra Modi was once shunned by the U.S. In 2005, the then-chief minister of the Indian state of Gujarat was denied a diplomatic visa amid accusations he tacitly supported Hindu mobs during communal violence three years earlier that left more than 1,000 people, most of them Muslim, dead.
But he is shunned no more. On June 22, Washington will roll out the red carpet for Modi, who will become just the third world leader (after France’s Emmanuel Macron and South Korea’s Yoon Suk Yeol) to be invited by President Joe Biden for a state visit and dinner, the highest of diplomatic receptions typically reserved for only the closest of allies. That Biden has chosen to fete Modi in this way is indicative of the “deep and close partnership” between their two countries, the White House said in a statement, especially on matters of foreign policy. But it is perhaps also emblematic of the growing visibility and electoral heft of the Indian American community.
“Indian Americans are a key constituency and a key vote in a number of swing states,” says Sara Sadhwani, an assistant professor of politics at Pomona College and a senior researcher at AAPI Data, which publishes demographic data and policy research on Asian Americans.
With a population of nearly 5 million, Indian Americans are the second-largest immigrant group and fastest-growing voting bloc in the U.S. today. Their impact is evident at the ballot box, where Indian Americans voted in record numbers during the 2020 presidential election. It is also becoming increasingly apparent in the halls of power, from Congress (where there are five Indian American lawmakers currently serving, up from just one a decade ago) to the White House (where Kamala Harris, who is biracial, made history as the first Vice President of Indian heritage). While every presidential contest since 2016 has featured at least one Indian American…
[ad_2]
