For the first time, Jain American elected to Congress
(RNS) — Dr. Amish Shah, a physician, Democrat and Arizona state legislator who said he was “promoting the Jain way of life” during his campaign, won Arizona’s 1st Congressional District on Tuesday, becoming the first Jain American elected to Congress.
In Florida, Democrat Pia Dandiya, a former high school principal whose parents are practicing Jains, won the 22nd Congressional District. Her campaign did not respond to questions about whether she practices the faith. Indian American Impact, a group backing South Asian candidates, counts both as Jain Americans.
There are an estimated 150,000 adherents to Jainism in the U.S., according to the Arihanta Institute, a nonprofit that promotes Jain-related education and research.
Some Jains celebrated the prospect of having representation in Congress for the first time ever.
“With Amish and Pia, the timeless Jain values of nonviolence, non-attachment and the multiplicity of viewpoints will carry forward,” said Manish Mehta, chair of the diaspora committee of the Federation of Jain Associations in North America. Mehta is Jain and said he knows Dandiya’s parents. “They will be really good examples of people who rule with their heads and their hearts together.”
Jainism, which originated in India more than 2,500 years ago, is often summarized by three principles: ahimsa (nonviolence toward all living beings), aparigraha (non-attachment) and anekantavada (the understanding that truth has many dimensions).
Pia Dandiya. (Photo courtesy of Dandiya campaign)
As a state legislator and a self-described lifelong vegetarian, Shah introduced legislation promoting animal welfare, including banning cat declawing and puppy mills, aligning with ahimsa. He also sponsored bills supporting public health, gun safety and education. His Jain father and Hindu mother immigrated from India in the 1960s, according to his Arizona State Legislature biography.
Dandiya won a district that was gerrymandered to favor Republicans. According to Mehta, Dandiya’s parents are practicing Jains who have donated to Jain organizations. Dandiya’s parents immigrated from Jaipur, India, to Jupiter, Florida, where she was born and raised. Jupiter is about a 30-minute drive from Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago residence.
Of the 56 candidates endorsed by Indian American Impact, 41 won in races ranging from Congress to state legislatures and local offices, said communications director Sarah Shah. Ten races were still being counted as of 2 p.m. Thursday (November 5). The winners include Hindus, Buddhists, Jains, Sikhs, Unitarian Universalists and non-affiliated, said Indian American Impact’s executive director, Chintan Patel.
As in the current Congress, there will be six South Asian representatives. But the group will be more religiously diverse. Indian American Impact counts two Hindu members, one Unitarian Universalist, two Jain, and one unaffiliated representative. Four are incumbents who won re-election. Shah and Dandiya are newcomers.
“The South Asian community is made up of people from lots of different faiths,” Patel said. “We’re seeing that diversity reflected in the Indian and South Asian American candidates who are running and winning. I think that is an incredible source of pride.”
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