New York: Crucial midterm elections are taking place in the US and among the candidates are several people who trace their roots to Kerala. Some of these Malayali candidates have already held public offices and are contesting for the second time.
Candidates having Kerala links include Robin Elackatt, who is leading in the race to be the Mayor of Missouri City; K P George, who hopes to become County Judge at Fort Bend again; Surendran K Pattel for the post of 240th Judicial Court Judge; Jaison Joseph, who aims to be Justice of the Peace PCT-2 at Fort Bend County; Raj Pillai, who is seeking a mandate for the Treasurer post at Will County, Illinois; Dan Mathews, who is in the fray for being the state representative from Texas District 76; and Juli Mathew, who is seeking votes to be the Court-3 Judge at Fort Bend County for another term.
Apart from candidates hailing from Kerala, several others having Indian connections are also in the fray. They include Dr Amy Bera at California 7, Ro Khanna at California 17, Shri Thanedar at Michigan 13, Pramila Jayapal at Seattle 7 and Raja Krishnamoorthy at Illinois 8.
Mayor Robin Elackatt
The incumbent Mayor of Missouri City, Robin Elackatt is popular not only among Keralites but also in other communities for developing his city as one of the best in the US. He was born at Kurumulloor, a village in Kottayam district, and has been living in the US for the past 40 years.
After completing his education, Robin worked in the health sector and launched his own business enterprise. He was elected as a council member for the first time in 2009. He was elected unopposed to the council during the elections in 2011 and 2013 also. In 2015, he took a break from politics but returned in 2020 to become the Mayor.
Robin’s wife Tina hails from Changanassery and works in the health sector in the US. The couple has two daughters, Lia and Katelin.
Judge Juli Mathew
A Judge at Court-3 at Fort Bend, which is among the biggest counties in Texas, Juli Mathew is seeking reelection. Fort Bend has a large population of Indians, including Malayalis, and Juli is hoping for an easy win. She has 15 years of legal experience and a four-year track record as a judge. Juli believes courts should work for the people.
Juli arrived in the US as a 10-year-old and completed her school education in the country. She later earned a law degree from Pennsylvania State and started her practice. In 2002, Juli gained a Texas Law License from Houston and started practicing there. She became the first Asian American Judge in Texas by polling 58 percent of the votes in the 2018 elections.
Juli is the daughter of Thomas Daniel and Soosamma Thomas, who belong to Vennikkulam in Pathanamthitta. Jimmy Mathew, an industrialist who hails from Vazhayil, Kasaragod, is her husband. The couple has three children, Aleena, Ava and Sofiya.
Judge K P George
K P George - originally from Pathanamthitta - is making a bid to become the Judge at Fort Bend County for another term. During the first elections he contested, George had secured a highly improbable victory, which boosted his confidence this time. A Democratic candidate, George was born in Kokkathode village in Pathanamthitta.
As a judge, George could successfully deal with people of diverse communities in his region. Moreover, George’s interventions during the COVID-19 crisis were exemplary and his county secured the top position in vaccination in the state. COVID-19 checks, treatment and special aid for the victims are among his achievements.
George’s wife is Sheeba, a school teacher at Fort Bend and they have three children, Rohit, Helen Marie and Sneha.
Surendran K Pattel
Contesting under the Democratic Party flag, Surendran K Pattel hopes to be the Judge of the 240th Judicial District Court. Having displayed his prowess in civil, criminal, labour and industrial law, Surendran’s slogan is equality before the law.
Born in Kerala, Surendran started practicing as an advocate there in 1996. In 2007, he accompanied his wife, a registered nurse, to the US. His wife joined the Medical Center in the US and Surendran cleared the American Bar Exam in 2009. He also earned an LLM from the University of Houston’s Law Center.
In the previous elections, Surendran had reached the run-off stage for the Family Court Judge.
Jaison Joseph
Seeking a mandate to become the Justice of the Peace PCT-2 at Fort Bend County, Texas, Jaison Joseph is a Republican Party candidate. The Keralite promises social justice; equal legal and Constitutional rights and value-based leadership.
Raj Pillai
Raj Pillai is also a Republican candidate and is aiming for the post of Treasurer at Will County, Illinois. It is the fourth biggest county in Illinois and Raj promises that he would account for every dollar paid as tax by the citizens. A noted accounting professional in the region with 17 years of experience, Raj says that he would wipe out corruption and focus on transparency if elected.
He is the Director of Client Services at Harmer Financial Services since 2019. A former US Navy officer, Raj is also a Public Accountant.
Raj’s family comprises his wife Devna, who is a nurse and their three children.
Dan Mathews
An engineer, entrepreneur and Christian preacher, Dan Mathews is contesting under the Republican Party banner for the post of State Representative from Texas District 76. His agenda lists prevention of illegal immigration, curbing the trafficking of drugs and criminals across the border, slashing property tax and checking electoral fraud.
The Keralite has been working in the oil and gas sectors for the past 23 years. Dan possesses a Mechanical Engineering degree and an MBA and is a member of the Christian Assemblies of Houston Church.
Born in India, Dan had lived for some years in Zambia before he arrived in Texas, where has spent the last 33 years. He also set up the Stafford Christian Center in 2016 and is engaged in numerous charity activities.
Dan is married to Daisy. Christopher and Melody are their children.