| S. Raja Krishnamoorthi | |
|---|---|
| Personal details | |
| Born | New Delhi, India |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Residence | Hoffman Estates, Illinois[1] |
| Alma mater | Harvard Law School (J.D.) Princeton University (B.S.E.) |
| Website | rajaforcongress.com |
S. Raja Krishnamoorthi is currently a Democratic candidate for United States House of Representatives in Illinois' 8th congressional district.
Krishnamoorthi was the policy director and a senior advisor for Barack Obama's 2004 U.S. Senate campaign. He also served as an advisor to Obama's 2008 Presidential campaign. In April 2009, he resigned from his position as Deputy Treasurer of Illinois and ran for the Democratic nomination for Illinois State Comptroller. Krishnamoorthi's campaign, which gained the two major Chicago newspaper endorsements, garnered nearly 386,000 votes.
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Raja Krishnamoorthi was born in 1973 in New Delhi, India. He was 3 months old when his parents immigrated to the United States and brought him to Buffalo, New York. There his father completed a graduate degree in industrial engineering. In 1980, the family moved to Peoria, Illinois, after his father was appointed a faculty member at Bradley University.[2] His family's heritage is from Tamil Nadu, India.
Krishnamoorthi graduated a Valedictorian from Richwoods High School in Peoria, Illinois and then attended Princeton University, where he graduated summa cum laude in mechanical engineering and with a minor in public policy from the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs. After two years in management consulting, he attended Harvard Law School, graduating with honors.[2] After his 2000 graduation, he clerked for Judge Joan B. Gottschall at the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois.[3] He then joined the Chicago law firm of Kirkland & Ellis in 2002, where he practiced commercial litigation and became a partner in the firm.[3] He left Kirkland & Ellis in 2007 to become Illinois's Deputy State Treasurer.[2]
A long-time friend of Barack Obama, Krishnamoorthi served in several positions in Obama's campaigns, first in Obama's failed primary run in the 1st congressional district election in 2000. In Obama's successful 2004 U.S. Senate campaign, Krishnamoorthi was issues director during the primary and a senior advisor during the general election. He also advised Obama in the 2008 presidential election.[2] On July 31, 2009, Krishnamoorthi visited the White House and had a personal meeting with President Obama in the Oval Office.
During the non-presidential year of 2006, Krishnamoorthi made two contributions to gubernatorial candidates in other states: to Chet Culver in the 2006 Iowa race, and to Ted Strickland in the 2006 Ohio race.[4]
While at the private law firm Kirkland & Ellis, Krishnamoorthi was appointed by Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan as a Special Assistant Attorney General to help start the anti-corruption Public Integrity Unit.[2][3] He also served on the board of the Illinois Housing Development Authority (IHDA), becoming chair of its Audit Committee.[3] The IHDA is charged with helping low- and moderate-income Illinoisans find affordable housing.
On September 12, 2007, Illinois Treasurer Alexi Giannoulias appointed Krishnamoorthi his Deputy Treasurer for Policy and Programs, making Krishnamoorthi one of the highest-ranking Indian Americans to serve the State of Illinois.[3] As Deputy Treasurer, Krishnamoorthi was responsible for overseeing programs in the Illinois Treasurer's Office involving the custody and administration of billions of dollars in state funds. He also helped the Illinois Treasurer's Office administer ethics and transparency rules.
In April 2009, Krishnamoorthi resigned from his position as Deputy Treasurer of Illinois and opened a campaign exploratory committee for Illinois Comptroller.[2] During his bid to be the first Asian-American to be elected to statewide office in Illinois, his campaign broke fundraising records for the primary election for the Comptroller's race,[5] garnered endorsements from more than 100 elected and community leaders from Illinois,[6] launched a statewide television advertisement,[7] and earned the endorsement of both major Chicago newspapers, the Chicago Tribune,[8][9] and the Chicago Sun-Times.[10] In the election, Krishnamoorthi won over 380,000 votes, coming within 1 percent of winning the Democractic nomination for Comptroller (unofficial results).[11] As a result, he was among a list of candidates considered for the Democratic nomination for Lieutenant Governor of Illinois, after the primary winner Scott Lee Cohen stepped down from the nomination due to a domestic abuse scandal.[12]
Krishnamoorthi is currently a Democratic candidate for United States Congress in Illinois's Eighth Congressional District, which includes the Northwest Suburbs of Chicago where Krishnamoorthi lives in Hoffman Estates.[13] The seat is currently held by freshman Republican Congressman Joe Walsh (Illinois politician).
Krishnamoorthi was named President of Sivananthan Laboratories in Bolingbrook, Illinois.
rajaforcongress Official 2012 Campaign Website