Today is Election Day in many states across the nation, the primary elections to be exact. Though there are a few of desis running for office across the nation, there are FOUR running for office in Maryland (Thanks, IALI).

Kumar Barve (District 17) [WaPo Review] Age:43

First elected in 1990, and re-elected three times--in 1994,1998, and 2002, Delegate Kumar P. Barve, age 43, 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, Maryland.

Barve's grandfather, Shankar L. Gokhale, was the President of Holkar College in Indore, India. Gokhale immigrated to the United States 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 at the Hammersmith School of Building in London, England. Kumar P. Barve is the first person of Indian origin to be elected as a state legislator in United States history. [link]

Nina Basu (District 13) [WaPo Review] Age: 25

Basu, a financial analyst [and law student] who is waging her first campaign for state office, lists her top priorities as funding education, mass transit and public safety. Basu, who has served on the Long Reach Village Board since 2003, said her priorities - like those of the other candidates - require money to come to fruition. Seeking that money would be her primary role as a delegate, she said. [link]

Shukoor Ahmed (District 23A) [WaPo Review] Age:44

Ahmed moved to the United States from India at the age of 25 with, he said, only $500. He earned a bachelor's degree in computer science and a master's degree in public policy from American University and, in 2000, started his own company. He has had the political bug since he was young, Ahmed said, and worked on the Democratic presidential campaigns of Joe Lieberman and Bill Bradley. Ahmed said his passion is to "use technology to improve (government) services to citizens" - an area in which most legislators lack expertise, he noted. [link]

Saqib Ali (District 39) [WaPo Review] Age: 31

You might remember Ali from last month, and the story of the anti-islam demonstrator in his front yard.

Like Barve, he was recently endorsed by the Washington Post which stated "[p]olitical newcomer Saqib Ali has shown good command of issues and would bring new vigor to this district's delegation." He has also been endorsed by the Montgomery County Education Association. A software engineer, he has lived in Montgomery County since 1991 when he moved there to attend college. Ali has out raised all candidates. As the Post observes "challenger Saqib Ali has raised $63,000 for his campaign to be the Democratic nominee for the state House. That's twice as much as the three incumbents in the district have raised, combined, in the past year. [link]

It's great to see four desis running for office in Maryland. I've had to opportunity to meet with Barve in the past and I would have to say that it was his pioneering that paved the road for desis to run for political office the Maryland today. Good luck to the candidates and if you live in Maryland, don't forget to vote!