Indian American in running for Delaware house seat

New York: In a repeat of the 2002 contest, Indian American Democratic candidate Prameela D. Kaza is challenging incumbent Republican Nancy Wagner in the Delaware state House of Representatives.

Kaza, 57, a mother of two sons, has added more issues to her campaign after having lost to Wagner in 2002 in the battle for the Dover 31st District seat. Wagner has been holding the seat since 1992.

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Dover is the capital of Delaware state and also the county seat of Kent. The 31st District covers the west and the north of the city, which has a population of about 35,000.

"I just think that it's time for a change," Kaza, who works as an auditor and grant manager in the Delaware Transit Corp, told The News Journal.

"I believe in open government and involving citizens in the legislative process. I don't think that we have that now."

Kaza is banking on voters' hunger for change and promising "smart growth" in her area through infrastructure boost. She also hopes to get more business for Delaware.

"There is no reason that we cannot become the corporate capital of the world," Kaza told Newszap.com.

Kaza also believes that her rival should have worked harder in areas that improve Kent County's economy, improve wages and access to health care services.

"It's very difficult. I spoke with a woman who said that she has to work three or four jobs to take care of her family because the minimum wage is so low," the reports quoted her as saying.

Another area of priority for Kaza is education.

"I want to work for quality education for all of our children, for better compensation for our teachers and better accountability for school administrators," she was quoted as saying.

Kaza, who says she is running as an outsider with a passion for working for the people, has raised around $24,000 for her campaign fund. This has mainly come from out-of-state contributors with Indian-American ties in states as far away as Texas and California, according to the Journal.

Having graduated in economics in India, Kaza did her master's from Delaware State University.

She is also a member of the Dover Metropolitan Planning Organisation, League of Women Voters, Indian-American Friendship Council, Delaware Multicultural Education Council, Interfaith Council of Central Delaware and Dover Human Relations Commission.



Source: IANS