Ash Kalra (born January 21, 1972) is a Canadian-American politician who has served as a member of the

California State Assembly The California State Assembly is the lower house of the California State Legislature (the upper house being the California State Senate). The Assembly convenes, along with the State Senate, at the California State Capitol in Sacramento, Califor ...

since 2016. A member of the Democratic Party, Kalra previously served on the

San Jose City Council The San Jose City Council, officially San José City Council, is the legislature A legislature (, ) is a deliberative assembly with the legal authority to make laws for a political entity such as a country, nation or city on behalf of t ...

from 2008 to 2016. Kalra represents the 25th Assembly District, which encompasses parts of eastern San Jose, and chairs the California Legislative Progressive Caucus and the Assembly Labor and Employment Committee. A first-generation immigrant, he is the first

Hindu Hindus (; ; also known as Sanātanīs) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism, also known by its endonym Sanātana Dharma. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pp. 35–37 Historically, the term has also be ...

and

Indian American Indian Americans are Americans whose ancestry originates wholly or partly from India. The terms Asian Indian and East Indian are used to avoid confusion with Native Americans in the United States, Native Americans in the United States, who ar ...

to serve in the

California State Legislature The California State Legislature is the bicameral state legislature of the U.S. state of California, consisting of the California State Assembly (lower house with 80 members) and the California State Senate (upper house with 40 members). ...

Early life and education

Kalra was born in

Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

n parents. His family immigrated to the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

in 1978 and settled in San Jose, California, where Kalra has lived ever since. Kalra attended San Jose public schools and is a graduate of Oak Grove High School. He attended the

University of California, Santa Barbara The University of California, Santa Barbara (UC Santa Barbara or UCSB) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Santa Barbara County, California, United States. Tracing its roots back to 1891 as an ...

, where he received a

Bachelor of Arts A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts deg ...

in communications in 1993, and later

Georgetown University Georgetown University is a private university, private Jesuit research university in Washington, D.C., United States. Founded by Bishop John Carroll (archbishop of Baltimore), John Carroll in 1789, it is the oldest Catholic higher education, Ca ...

, from which he graduated with a

Juris Doctor A Juris Doctor, Doctor of Jurisprudence, or Doctor of Law (JD) is a graduate-entry professional degree that primarily prepares individuals to practice law. In the United States and the Philippines, it is the only qualifying law degree. Other j ...

in 1996.

Legal career

As a law student, Kalra taught at inner city schools in

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

He returned to San Jose after law school and became a law professor at

San Jose State University San José State University (San Jose State or SJSU) is a Public university, public research university in San Jose, California. Established in 1857, SJSU is the List of oldest schools in California, oldest public university on the West Coast of ...

and Lincoln Law School. In addition to teaching, Kalra was a deputy public defender for

Santa Clara County Santa Clara County, officially the County of Santa Clara, is the sixth-most populous county in the U.S. state of California, with a population of 1,936,259 as of the 2020 census. Santa Clara County and neighboring San Benito County form the ...

for 11 years. He represented clients in

felony A felony is traditionally considered a crime of high seriousness, whereas a misdemeanor is regarded as less serious. The term "felony" originated from English common law (from the French medieval word "''félonie''") to describe an offense that r ...

and

misdemeanor A misdemeanor (American English, spelled misdemeanour elsewhere) is any "lesser" criminal act in some common law legal systems. Misdemeanors are generally punished less severely than more serious felonies, but theoretically more so than admi ...

trials and spent most of his time in drug treatment court to help his clients get into rehabilitation programs.

Political career

Kalra was elected to the

in 2008 and served two terms on the city council. He represented District 2, which encompassed South San Jose. Kalra was first elected to the California State Assembly in 2016, succeeding term-limited Democrat

Nora Campos Nora Campos (born June 15, 1965) is an American politician from California. Campos formerly served as a California State Assemblymember and was the Speaker pro tempore during her tenure. In 2020, she was unsuccessful in her campaign for the Ca ...

and defeating fellow Democrat and San Jose city councilmember

Madison Nguyen Madison Nguyen is an Americans, American politician from California. She served on the San Jose City Council from 2005 to 2014, representing District 7, and she additionally served as Vice-Mayor from 2011 to 2014. She was the first Vietnamese-A ...

. He is the first

and

to serve in the

. Kalra currently chairs the California Legislative Progressive Caucus as well as the Assembly Labor and Employment Committee and the Assembly Select Committee on the Future of Work and Workers. Kalra supported Bernie Sanders's 2020 presidential campaign. He was mentioned as a possible replacement for

Xavier Becerra Xavier Becerra (; born January 26, 1958) is an American attorney and politician who served as the 25th United States secretary of health and human services, a position he held from March 19, 2021 to January 20, 2025. He is the first Latino to h ...

Attorney General of California The attorney general of California is the state attorney general of the government of California. The officer must ensure that "the laws of the state are uniformly and adequately enforced" ( Constitution of California, Article V, Section 13). ...

following Becerra's appointment as

Secretary of Health and Human Services The United States secretary of health and human services is the head of the United States Department of Health and Human Services, and serves as the principal advisor to the president of the United States on all health matters. The secretary is ...

, but fellow

Bay Area The San Francisco Bay Area, commonly known as the Bay Area, is a region of California surrounding and including San Francisco Bay, and anchored by the cities of Oakland, San Francisco, and San Jose. The Association of Bay Area Governments ...

assemblymember

Rob Bonta Robert Andres Bonta (born September 22, 1972) is a Filipino and American lawyer and politician who has served as attorney general of California since 2021. A member of the Democratic Party, he previously served as a member of the California Stat ...

was appointed instead. Kalra authored the California Racial Justice Act of 2020. In 2023, Kalra authored legislation that would prohibit the towing or immobilizing vehicles due to unpaid parking tickets. The San Jose Department of Transportation spokesperson said that the legislation would make parking enforcement in San Jose more difficult. Kalra is a member of the

California Legislative Progressive Caucus The California Legislative Progressive Caucus is a California political organization composed of progressive members of the California State Assembly The California State Assembly is the lower house of the California State Legislature (the ...

Personal life

Kalra lives in San Jose. He practices

Hinduism Hinduism () is an Hypernymy and hyponymy, umbrella term for a range of Indian religions, Indian List of religions and spiritual traditions#Indian religions, religious and spiritual traditions (Sampradaya, ''sampradaya''s) that are unified ...

and is a vegan. In 2011, Kalra was arrested for and pleaded

no contest ''Nolo contendere'' () is a type of legal plea used in some jurisdictions in the United States. It is also referred to as a plea of no contest or no defense. It is a plea where the defendant neither admits nor disputes a charge, serving as an ...

driving under the influence Driving under the influence (DUI) is the crime of driving, operating, or being in control of a vehicle while one is impaired from doing so safely by the effect of either alcohol (drug), alcohol (see drunk driving) or some other drug, whether re ...

of alcohol. He was sentenced to serve community service hours and receive counseling.

Electoral history

California State Assembly

2016 election

2018 election

2020 election

2022 election

2024 election

References

External links

*
Campaign website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kalra, Ash 1972 births California politicians of Indian descent Living people Democratic Party members of the California State Assembly Politicians from San Jose, California Politicians from Toronto Public defenders San Jose State University faculty 21st-century members of the California State Legislature Lincoln Law School of San Jose faculty