Usha Chilukuri Vance, wife of JD Vance, who was announced as Donald Trump’s running mate for the upcoming US presidential elections on Monday, has a rich background and a strong connection to Indian culture.
Usha Vance, a prominent litigator at a national firm, is the daughter of Indian immigrants and boasts impressive academic credentials. She earned a bachelor’s degree in History from Yale University and a Master of Philosophy degree from the University of Cambridge, as reported by the New York Times.
Known previously as Usha Chilukuri, she has built a notable career in law, having clerked for Supreme Court Justices John Roberts and Brett Kavanaugh before Kavanaugh’s appointment to the Court. Growing up in a suburb of San Diego, California, she was raised with a strong emphasis on education and hard work. Her academic accomplishments include roles as Managing Editor of the Yale Journal of Law & Technology and Executive Development Editor of The Yale Law Journal, according to her biography from the Munger, Tolles & Olson law firm.
After her time at Yale, Usha continued her studies at Cambridge as a Gates fellow, where she was involved with left-wing and liberal groups. She was registered as a Democrat in 2014. Usha and JD Vance met at Yale Law School and married in Kentucky in 2014, with a Hindu priest conducting a separate ceremony, as mentioned by the New York Times. The couple has three children.
Usha Vance has been a crucial yet understated influence in her husband’s achievements, aiding him in conceptualizing his thoughts on social decline in rural white America, which led to his best-selling memoir “Hillbilly Elegy,” later adapted into a film by Ron Howard in 2020. She has occasionally appeared with Vance during his campaign for the Ohio Senate seat.
As the US presidential elections approach, former President Donald Trump selected JD Vance as his Vice President candidate, confirmed via a social media post.
Speaking to ANI, AI Mason, a US-based global real estate investment advisor and entrepreneur, highlighted Usha Vance’s achievements and connection to Indian culture, noting, “Usha Vance is a highly accomplished attorney and daughter of Indian immigrants — and her husband brings youth and diversity to the Trump ticket. She knows the Indian culture and all about India. She can be a big help to her husband in navigating great ties between USA and India.”
In a previous interview with Fox & Friends, Usha Chilukuri Vance and her husband discussed their different faiths and addressed speculations about JD Vance being a potential Vice President candidate. Usha expressed admiration for her husband’s hard work and creativity, stating, “I don’t think people understand how hard he works and how creative he is. Everything he says and does is built on a foundation of so much thought. He’s always trying to do better.”
When asked about her support for JD Vance in the presidential race, Usha mentioned, “There are a few different reasons…One is that I grew up in a religious household. My parents are Hindu, and that was one of the things that made them such good parents, that makes them really very good people. And so I think I’ve seen that…the power of that in my own life, and I knew that JD was searching for something. This just felt right for him.”
This interview took place three weeks before the announcement of JD Vance as Trump’s running mate for the upcoming elections.
JD Vance, born James David Bowman in Middletown, Ohio, faced a challenging childhood with a mother struggling with addiction and a father who left when he was a toddler, leading to him being raised by his grandparents.
The Trump campaign, following a recent assassination attempt on Trump, emphasized a message of unity. During a rally in Pennsylvania, Trump was attacked, resulting in one death and several injuries. The gunman, identified as Thomas Matthew Crooks, was killed by Secret Service agents. This incident follows the dismissal of a classified documents case against Trump by Judge Aileen Cannon, who ruled that the appointment of special counsel Jack Smith “violated the Constitution.”