Washington, Nov 6 (IANS) Allies of Indian-American Congressman Ro Khanna launched an effort to encourage him to run for US president in 2028, while the California Democrat said he would decide with his family after the holidays whether to contest or support someone else.

The “Run Ro” initiative is a supporters’ campaign to draft him into the race. Khanna has not announced a presidential bid.

Former Democratic congressman Jamaal Bowman of New York and progressive strategist Nomiki Konst are leading the effort. They told NBC News the committee would raise money and organise support while Khanna considers his political future.

“Whether I run or support someone else is something I will decide with my family after the holidays,” Khanna said in a statement to NBC News.

He welcomed the encouragement, identifying universal healthcare through Medicare for All, ending foreign wars and taxing billionaires as priorities. His statement left open both a candidacy and the possibility of backing another contender.

Politico reported that Khanna was not directly involved in the group. The distinction means Thursday’s announcement came from people seeking to persuade him to run, rather than from the congressman launching a presidential campaign.

The initiative was announced two days after the US midterm elections. Khanna has visited states that vote early in the presidential nomination process, according to Politico.

In an interview with that publication on Wednesday, he said he would decide “sometime over the holidays”. His subsequent statement to NBC described a family decision after the holidays, without setting an announcement date.

Konst told NBC the organisers wanted progressive economic ideas to influence the presidential debate from the outset. She argued that early organisation would help progressives compete with centrists who already have established networks of donors and political advisers.

In a separate interview with The Washington Post, Konst said she had known Khanna for more than a decade. She pointed to his efforts to mobilise voters and support fellow Democrats during the 2026 election campaign.

She also highlighted his positions on artificial intelligence and taxation of wealthy individuals, alongside his work seeking the release of records relating to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

Konst, who has worked with campaigns for former president Barack Obama and Senator Bernie Sanders, told the Post that Khanna’s work reflected “the thing that Americans want right now”.

That assessment represents the case his supporters are making for a potential candidacy. The committee’s launch does not establish how much support he would command among Democratic primary voters.

Khanna’s published political platform combines support for American manufacturing and technological innovation with expanded public services.

Born in Philadelphia in 1976 to an immigrant family, Khanna represents California’s 17th Congressional District in Silicon Valley. His father worked as a chemical engineer and his mother as a substitute teacher’s assistant for children with special needs. His grandfather, Amarnath Vidyalanker, participated in India’s independence movement and was imprisoned for opposing British rule, according to his biography.

Khanna studied economics at the University of Chicago and earned a law degree from Yale University. He served as a deputy assistant secretary at the Commerce Department during the Obama administration and was a co-chair of Sanders’ 2020 presidential campaign. He lives in Fremont, California, with his wife, Ritu, and their two children.

--IANS

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