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Indian American juniors win Congressional App Challenge in Virginia’s 10 district
The winning app, ElectConnect, was developed by Saurish Tripathi, Gautam Annamalai, and Jacob Percy.
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Malvika Choudhary - Fri, 02, Jan 2026
- 15:41 EST
- 11
Suhas Subramanyam with the team of ElectConnect / X (Suhas Subramanyam)
An app created by Indian American 11th-graders won the 2025 Congressional App Challenge for Virginia's 10th Congressional District, hosted by Congressman Suhas Subramanyam.
ElectConnect, developed by Saurish Tripathi, Gautam Annamalai, and their teammate Jacob Percy, was recognized for its ability to connect voters directly to their representatives and simplify access to reliable election information.
Also Read: Indian American students win Texas congressional app contest
In their project submission and demonstration video, the students outlined how voters—particularly first-time voters—often struggle with opinion-driven content and unclear messaging when researching candidates and public issues.
Congratulations to Saurish, Gautam, and Jacob, the 11th grade team behind ElectConnect, the winner of our 2025 App Challenge. ElectConnect is a civic engagement app that connects voters directly to their representatives and simplifies access to reliable election information. You… pic.twitter.com/rwa6UdTYSf
— Rep. Suhas Subramanyam (VA-10) (@RepSuhas) December 31, 2025
The app integrates neutral news sources, source-based fact-checking of candidate claims, and structured information about local elected officials.
Users can view where legislators stand on issues, read previously asked public questions, submit their own questions, locate nearby polling places, and contact their representatives through pre-formatted messages. Responses from elected officials are stored in the app’s database and made visible to other users.
Tripathi, who said this is his second win at the Congressional App Challenge, noted in a LinkedIn post that building ElectConnect required moving beyond a prototype.
“We had to think about real users, clear information, and what it means to ship a product that is actually live and usable,” he wrote, adding that some planned features remain in development as the team balances infrastructure costs and scalability.
Tripathi has prior teaching experience as a Lead Sensei at Code Ninjas in Stone Ridge, Virginia, where he led coding camps and workshops in programming and web development.
He and Annamalai attend Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology, a public magnet school in Virginia. Annamalai is currently enrolled in the 10th grade.
In a post on X, Subramanyam congratulated the winners, describing the platform as a civic engagement app.
The Congressional App Challenge is a national competition organized by the U.S. House of Representatives in partnership with the Internet Education Foundation to encourage student innovation in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics.
Middle and high school students from participating congressional districts are invited to develop original software applications. Winning teams have their apps featured by the House and are typically invited to the #HouseOfCode showcase in Washington, D.C., where they present their projects to lawmakers and technology leaders.
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