Gen Z candidate Jay Vaingankar has thrown his hat into the ring for the 12th Congressional District seat in New Jersey. He hopes to secure the Democratic Party’s nomination to replace incumbent Congresswoman Bonnie Watson Coleman who announced her retirement. The Cook Political Report rates District 12 as a Democratic district, so if Vaingankar is chosen by the Democratic Party as its nominee, he could win the seat. The primaries are scheduled for June 2, 2026.
At least 6 Democratic candidates have so far declared their run for Congress, including another Indian American Sujit Singh, according to Wikipedia. There are also numerous potential candidates who have expressed interest, among them Shanti Narra, commissioner of Middlesex County, and Tina Shah, former senior advisor to the U.S. Surgeon General.
Vaingankar, an ex-White House official, who served also as Special Advisor in the Department of Energy in the Biden administration, is vying to be NJ’s first Gen Z and South Asian member of Congress, a December 8 press release from his campaign said.
“Congresswoman Watson Coleman broke glass ceilings, and Central Jersey owes a debt of gratitude for her decades of leadership,” Vaingankar is quoted saying in the press release. “I’m running for Congress to continue her progressive legacy and carry the baton for the next generation. It’s time to bring new energy to the fight against the Trump Administration and to tackle the affordability crisis.”
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Born and raised in Mercer County, Vaingankar helped implement what his campaign describes as the largest climate investment in history, including millions in clean energy tax credits for New Jersey. He returned home to work in solar energy to lower utility bills for New Jerseyans and fight the rising cost of living, his campaign said.
It is going to be a tough nomination to secure with a crowded field of Democratic nominees, but Vaigankar hopes his federal experience would move him forward. The 12th Congressional District includes Trenton and the Princeton area, as well as communities in Somerset, Middlesex, and Union Counties, most of which house a significant Indian American minority.
Vaingankar already has a campaign team made up of experienced political strategists who have served in other winning campaigns as well as in the White House, among them, Raghu Devaguptapu who leads electronic media and national outreach. Devaguptapu is the managing partner at TKO Political and Buying.
Vaingankar is a graduate of the Wharton School of Business where he did Business Economics and Public Policy (BEPP), and was a Wharton Public Policy Research Scholar. He also earned a bachelor’s degree in International Studies from the University of Pennsylvania.