AMN / WEB DESK
India-born Ghazala Firdous Hashmi has made history by winning the Virginia Lieutenant Governor’s race, becoming the first South Asian American and the first Indian-origin woman to hold the post.
The 61-year-old Democrat defeated Republican John Reid, six years after she first made history as a Virginia state senator. Hashmi will succeed Republican Winsome Earle-Sears, the first woman to serve in the role.
Born in Hyderabad in 1964, Ms. Hashmi spent her early years in the Malakpet area before moving to the United States at the age of four, where her father, a scholar pursuing a PhD in international relations in Georgia, later began a university teaching career.
Before entering politics, Hashmi had a distinguished 25-year career in academia, serving as a professor and founding director of a teaching and learning center in Virginia. Her transition from education to politics came in 2019 when she won a Virginia State Senate seat, becoming the first Muslim woman to serve in that body.
Throughout her public career, Hashmi has championed education, women’s rights, healthcare access, housing equity, and environmental justice. A strong advocate for reproductive freedom and social equality, she has emphasized inclusive governance and the importance of representation.
Her 2025 victory marks a historic milestone for diversity in American politics. Hashmi’s journey—from a young immigrant girl to one of the most powerful women in Virginia—embodies the promise of opportunity and pluralism at the heart of the American dream. She lives in Chesterfield County with her husband and two daughters.