Official Biography
Representative Ro Khanna is a leading progressive voice in the House working to restore American manufacturing and technology leadership, improve the lives of working people, and advance U.S. leadership on climate, human rights, and diplomacy around the world. He believes our nation needs a new economic patriotism to create jobs in the industries of the future and unify Americans -- from the South to the heartland to the coasts -- around a shared purpose.
Khanna proudly represents California's 17th Congressional District, located in the heart of Silicon Valley, and is serving his fifth term. He serves as vice chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, on the House Armed Services Committee as ranking member of the Subcommittee on Cyber, Innovative Technologies and Information Systems (CITI), a member of the Select Committee on the Strategic Competition between the United States and the Chinese Communist Party, and on the Oversight and Accountability committee, where he previously chaired the Environmental Subcommittee.
He has worked across the aisle to deliver on legislation to invest in science and technology, create millions of good paying tech jobs and revitalize American manufacturing and production. Khanna authored the Endless Frontier Act, which formed the basis for the sweeping CHIPS and Science Act signed into law by President Biden.
As Chair of the House Oversight and Reform Environmental Subcommittee, Khanna brought the CEOs of six major fossil fuel companies before Congress to testify under oath about climate disinformation for the first time in history. He also held hearings to investigate the health harms associated with leaded aviation fuel, implement better wildfire preparation measures, and protect America's food supply from the threats posed by climate change. During the Inflation Reduction Act negotiations, Khanna played a key role in ensuring that important climate provisions remained in the final deal.
He is committed to using his position to advance a foreign policy of military restraint and diplomatic engagement. Instead of spending trillions on wars overseas, Khanna believes we should invest in priorities at home like Medicare for All, affordable childcare and free public college and vocational school. To pay for his own higher education, he took out over $100,000 dollars in student loans and as a member of Congress he has called for student loan debt forgiveness – the more, the better.
Khanna is a strong supporter of the labor movement and has pushed for policies like the PRO Act to ensure that no one with a full-time job needs to rely on food stamps, housing vouchers, or other welfare. He is also one of only a few members of Congress to refuse contributions from PACs and lobbyists. He supports a 12-year term limit for Members of Congress, 18 years for Supreme Court Justices, and a constitutional amendment to overturn Citizens United. Since arriving in Congress, he has had five bills signed into law.
Khanna was born in Philadelphia, PA, during America's bicentennial, to a middle-class family. Both of his parents immigrated to the United States in the 1970s from India in search of opportunity and a better life for their children. His father is a chemical engineer and his mother is a substitute school teacher. Rep. Khanna's commitment to public service was inspired by his grandfather who was active in Gandhi's independence movement, worked with Lala Lajpat Rai in India, and spent several years in jail for promoting human rights.
Prior to serving in Congress, he taught economics at Stanford University and served as deputy assistant secretary of commerce in the Obama administration. He has written two books: E ntrepreneurial Nation: Why Manufacturing is Still Key to America's Future and Dignity in a Digital Age.
Khanna graduated Phi Beta Kappa with a B.A. in Economics from the University of Chicago and received a law degree from Yale University. As a student at the University of Chicago, he walked precincts during Barack Obama's first campaign for the Illinois Senate in 1996.
In his free time, Khanna enjoys cheering for the Golden State Warriors, watching movies, and traveling. He calls Fremont home, and he and his wife Ritu have two young children.
Follow him on Facebook and Twitter @RepRoKhanna.
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Members of the U.S. House of Representatives write and vote on federal laws, including the federal budget. Each represents one district and serves a two-year term. Tax bills must start in the House, only the House can impeach federal officials, and members oversee federal agencies through their committees.