Washington, DC – The current Louisiana Governor Piyush “Bobby” Jindal (born June 10, 1971) became the first ever Indian American to test the waters of the presidential election 2016 as he launched his Presidential Exploratory Committee this week. Jindal is the 55th Governor of Louisiana and the Vice Chairman of the Republican Governors Association.
Forming an exploratory committee is considered to be the first serious step toward a presidential bid and this time there is an ever expanding crowded field of aspirants for the Republicans.
On his website Jindal said, “My parents came to this country over 40 years ago with nothing but the belief that America is the land of freedom and opportunity. They were right. We must fight to make sure the next generation is not the first generation to inherit fewer opportunities than their parents.”
Jindal was born in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, to Amar and Raj Jindal, immigrants from Punjab, India, who came to the US six months before he was born. Although born to Indian Sikh immigrants, he covered to Christianity and wrote several articles about his spiritual journey that were published in the New Oxford Review.
The Republican Governor said he would take a final decision on a White House bid after his state’s legislative session ends in mid-June.
Will you join me?” Jindal asked on the home page of the website with the headline ‘Ready’.
“If I run, my candidacy will be based on the idea that the American people are ready to try a dramatically different direction,” said Jindal. “Not a course correction, but a dramatically different path.”