GOP Challengers to Khanna, Jayapal Have Just $5,000 Each for House Races

WASHINGTON, D.C.-Two Indian American Republicans challenging Democratic Representatives Ro Khanna and Pramila Jayapal for seats in the US House have about $5,000 each in campaign cash, Federal Election Commission (FEC) filings show.

Ritesh Tandon, the Republican nominee in California’s 17th Congressional District, reported $5,227 in cash on October 14 after raising $4,551 in the first two weeks of the month. He had ended September with $702.

Nirav Sheth, the Republican nominee in Washington’s 7th Congressional District, reported no fundraising or spending from July 23 to September 30 and ended the period with $5,043.77. He has raised $8,900 in 2026.

The Democratic incumbents have substantially larger campaign funds. Khanna had $16,936,477 in cash on September 30, while Jayapal raised $348,702 from July 16 to September 30 and had $1,767,956 in the bank.

Tandon has raised $57,011 for the current election cycle, with no loans or party funding. Outside groups had spent nothing in the district’s general election, according to PaidForPolitics, which tracks FEC data.

Khanna won California’s June 2 top-two primary with 62.3 per cent of the vote, compared with 14.8 per cent for Tandon. In Washington’s August 4 primary, Jayapal received 83.8 per cent, while Sheth took 10.6 per cent.

This is Tandon’s fourth run for the seat. FEC records show his fundraising declining from $178,536 in 2020 to $116,486 in 2022 and $26,133 in 2024.

A Silicon Valley technology entrepreneur, Tandon came to the United States from India at 28, worked at Cisco and heads Kricel Corporation. His campaign website says his grandfather, Kanhaiyalal Tandon, fought for India’s independence.

Sheth, who was born and raised in India, came to the United States in 2008 to study engineering, served four years in the Marines and joined the Lakewood, Washington, police in 2017, according to his website.

FEC records also list Sheth as a candidate for the same seat in 2024.

A third Indian American Republican House nominee, Mahesh “Max” Ganorkar, is challenging Democratic Representative Valerie Foushee in North Carolina. He raised $6,651 in the third quarter. All three Republicans are running in districts considered safe for Democrats. (IANS)