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Vaingankar says Loomer’s racist remarks led to threats
The 28-year-old candidate is part of a crowded Democratic race to succeed Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman.
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Staff Reporter - Mon, 06, Apr 2026
- 17:05 EDT
- 23
Jay Vaingankar/ Laura Loomer / File Photo
Democratic congressional candidate Jay Vaingankar said that he and his campaign were subjected to racist abuse and threats after far-right activist Laura Loomer and her supporters attacked him online over a Hindi-language campaign video.
In a statement, Vaingankar, running for Congress in New Jersey’s 12th Congressional District, said the attacks escalated into “death threats, racial slurs, and calls for me to be deported and stripped of my birthright citizenship” after Loomer and her allies accused him of being “un-American” and putting “America Last.”
Also Read: Indian American Impact backs Jay Vaingankar for Congress
The 28-year-old former Biden administration official said the backlash over his use of Hindi reflected a broader effort to stigmatize immigrant and multilingual communities in politics.
“Extremists like Loomer want to intimidate anyone who doesn’t fit a narrow definition of who belongs in this country, and they try to silence campaigns that are actually doing outreach in every community,” he said.
He also said the online abuse would not deter his campaign.
“The racist threats by extremist MAGA agitators like Loomer won’t scare me into stopping now,” Vaingankar said. “If anything, they make it even clearer what’s at stake in this election.”
He added that his campaign would remain focused on issues such as utility bills and health care costs.
“Our rising utility bills and health care premiums don’t care what language we speak at home,” he said. “I’m going to keep fighting for a new generation of leadership that represents all of us.”
The 12th District, represented by Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman, includes parts of Mercer, Middlesex, Somerset and Union counties. Census Reporter data shows 34.5 percent of residents are foreign-born and 43.7 percent speak a language other than English at home.
Vaingankar is among the candidates seeking to succeed Watson Coleman and has framed his candidacy around generational change, cost-of-living concerns and outreach to communities Democrats often fail to organize consistently.
He raised nearly $110,000 in the first quarter of 2026, bringing his total to about $260,000. His campaign has also received endorsements from the Indian American Impact Fund and AAPI Victory Fund.
Raised in Hightstown by parents who immigrated from Mumbai, Vaingankar has emphasized his background in community organizing and his work in the Biden White House and Department of Energy.
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