iNDICA NEWS BUREAU-
Indian-American politician Sara Gideon has won the Democratic primary for the US Senate seat from the state of Maine and will face incumbent Republican Senator Susan Collins in the November elections.
Gideon, backed by the Senate Democratic campaign arm and a number of outside political groups, had long been the favorite to challenge Collins, the sole remaining New England Republican in Congress.
“This campaign is about all of us, and about how we can build a stronger future together,” Gideon said in an acceptance speech broadcast on Facebook. “After 24 years in Washington, Senator Collins has become part of that broken system, putting special interests and her political party first, and Mainers know it and feel it.”
Gideon’s primary win formalizes a match-up that Democrats have been waiting more than a year for. Collins is among the most vulnerable GOP incumbents seeking reelection this year, and Gideon is one of the Democratic Party’s top recruits.
After entrepreneur Rik Mehta, she is the second Indian-American to have won a Senate primary race this election season. Both Gideon and Mehta are the first Indian-American to win the primaries in their respective states.
Daughter of Indian-American father and Armenian mother, Gideon has already attracted the attention of the entire Democratic Party from across the nation and has raised a massive USD 23 million, which is a Maine record.
Democrats are pinning a lot of hope on her to get them a majority in the Senate.
“We did it! Thank you to everyone who has supported our campaign to elect a senator who will fight for Mainers—not special interests,” Gideon said in a tweet after her victory.
Gideon’s father immigrated from India and worked as a pediatrician in Rhode Island, where Gideon, the youngest of four children, grew up. She moved to Maine after meeting her husband Ben Gideon, a personal injury trial lawyer.
If elected in November, she will be the second Indian-American woman to be elected to the US Senate. Kamala Harris from California is the first Indian-origin Senator to be elected to the US Senate.
A broken Washington has failed to take action to address the coronavirus pandemic, she said and alleged that her rival Senator Collins has become part of the establishment.
“Mainers deserve a Senator who brings people together,” Gideon said and promised to work with everyone and anyone to get things done.
“I’m running for Senate today because I know we can take on our toughest issues and work together to ensure that everyone has access to health care that is excellent and affordable,” she said.
“To build an economy that truly works for everyone, putting the interests of working families and small businesses first. To invest in ourselves. And to finally tackle special interests’ influence in our politics and return our government to the people,” she added.
“And as President Trump continues to divide our country, we remember all of the times when Senator Collins enabled and excused his attacks on our democracy,” she said.
The US is facing unprecedented challenges right now. The coronavirus pandemic continues to threaten the health, safety, and economy of America.
“If we are going to come together and make real progress to improve the lives of people here in Maine and across the country, then we need new leadership,” she said.
