Usha Chilukuri Vance came into the spotlight this week as the wife of JD Vance, former President Trump’s vice presidential running mate in the 2024 presidential election.
Her rise comes at a time when there is another prominent figure of South Asian descent across the aisle: Vice President Kamala Harris, the country’s first woman and person of color to hold her position.
In the primaries, the Republican Party also saw stronger representation from South Asian countries, with presidential candidates such as Vivek Ramaswamy, Nikki Haley and Tulsi Gabbard.
Some Indian-American political empowerment groups say they are joyful to see more representation in the electorate, but they do not believe Usha Vance’s rise will influence more liberal South Asian voters. Others say the Republicans’ response to hate speech about their religious identity needs to be examined.
On Wednesday, Usha Vance introduced her husband, the junior senator from Ohio, at the Republican National Convention by talking about their relationship.
“I grew up in San Diego, in a middle-class community with two loving parents, both immigrants from India, and a wonderful sister,” she said at the convention. “The fact that JD and I were even able to meet, let alone fall in love and get married, is a testament to this great country.”
Chintan Patel, executive director of the civic group Indian American Impact, said seeing Usha Vance in a position to become the first South Asian Second Lady helps people imagine what is possible.
“The increasing representation of Indians and South Asians in the United States is a great inspiration to our community,” Patel said.
Usha Vance, 38, was raised by a biologist and provost of the University of California, San Diego, whose father was an engineer, according to JD Vance’s campaign team. She met her husband at Yale University’s law school and later earned a master’s degree in philosophy from the University of Cambridge.
After studying law, Usha Vance worked as a law clerk for conservative judges: first for Brett Kavanaugh, the justice of the Supreme Court of the United States, then for an appellate judge in Washington and later for Chief Justice John Roberts.
She was then a litigator at Munger, Tolles & Olson, a law firm that bills itself as “radically progressive.” She left the firm shortly after her husband was nominated as Trump’s vice presidential running mate.
Usha Vance is a registered Republican, but identified herself as a Democrat in 2014.
Patel said that while it was inspiring to see a South Asian woman in Usha Vance’s position, what will be more significant to voters will be JD Vance’s stance on issues such as immigration, climate change and health care.
Patel said he was not concerned about South Asian votes being split between the two electoral lists. He said South Asians would support candidates who share their values, regardless of the ethnic makeup of the family.
“We are of course proud that she can take this position, but we are concerned about the legislation and policies that this potential government could support,” Patel said.
Some South Asians in America have already accused the Republican Party and the media of using Usha Vance’s profile to promote a model minority narrative over all Indians, despite many policies that harm their own community as well.
At the same time, cases of racism were also reported. Some even made fun of the names of the Vances’ children.
Deepa Iyer, an Indian-American activist and author, said the majority of the Indian community opposes anti-immigrant, racist and homophobic policies. She called the representation at the RNC “inauthentic” and not representative of the Indian community.
“We need people of color and immigrants to support policies that are inclusive and equitable,” Iyer said. “Instead of policies and platforms that divide and polarize people. So representation means nothing to communities that are going to be impacted by these really polarizing policies.”
A 2023 Pew Research Center study found that overall, about 62% of Asian American voters identify as Democrats or lean toward the Democratic Party, and 34% are Republicans. Broken down by demographics, the study showed that 68% of Indian-Americans identify as Democrats and 29% as Republicans.
In 2020, President Joe Biden received 69.6 percent of the Asian American vote, while 76 percent of Indian Americans voted for him. A study by Loyola Marymount and the University of California found that this may have been due to Harris’ candidacy.
Iyer said there is a huge dissonance between the Indian Americans appearing on the RNC stage and the core of the party’s ideology. She said speakers emphasized their immigrant backgrounds, but within the party, anti-immigrant rhetoric is still powerful.
“It’s important to remember that these anti-immigration policies actually affect many people in the Indian community, including families that include people like Usha Vance and others,” Iyer said. “It feels like the children of Indian immigrants on the main stage believe these policies don’t apply to them.”
Priti Pandya-Patel, co-founder of the South Asian Coalition of the Republican Party of New Jersey, said when she learned that Usha Vance is Indian and Hindu, she voted with pride that someone with that appearance could make it to the White House.
“I definitely think about the aspect of women empowerment and diversity and just being able to represent us,” Pandya-Patel said. “I’m happy that he chose someone who could represent the South Asian community.”
Pandya-Patel said Usha Vance’s presence shows how closely aligned the GOP is with South Asian views.
“As a Hindu, I have a lot of similar values and beliefs to the Republican Party that have nothing to do with religion,” Pandya-Patel said. “I think people are really starting to wake up a little bit more and see that the Republican Party brings us together.”
Iyer said there is a tiny group of Indian Americans and Hindus who are excited at the prospect of someone like Usha Vance being close to power, but most will look at the political situation when making their decision.
Suhag Shukla, executive director of the Hindu American Foundation, said the South Asian community is increasingly represented in positions of power.
If Vance became Second Lady, “it would be nothing less than historic,” Shukla said.
Despite the increased visibility of some South Asians, there are still many cases of anti-Hinduism and discrimination on both sides, Shukla said. As a member of the Indian-American community, Shukla said she observes how critical each party is of hateful comments about a person’s religion.
She said that if Usha Vance becomes Second Lady, her impact on the community will depend on the issues she advocates for.
“I would hope that her character and contribution will be the basis for her assessment,” Shukla said. “Not where her parents are from or how she prays or worships her faith.”
