Washington: Hirsh Vardhan Singh, an Indian-American engineer, has declared his bid for president. He joins Vivek Ramaswamy and Nikki Haley as the third persons of Indian heritage to enter the crowded Republican field of candidates aiming to lead the United States in 2024.
Singh, 38, said in a video statement shared on Twitter that he has been an "America First" conservative and "lifelong Republican" who has sought to revive the New Jersey Republican Party's conservative wing.
“We need strong leadership to reverse the changes that have occurred in the past few years and restore American values. That is why I have decided to seek the Republican Party’s nomination for the 2024 election for the office of president of the United States,” Singh said on Friday in a 3-minute video.
He officially filed his candidacy with the Federal Election Commission on Thursday, reported The Hill newspaper on Friday.
Prior to Singh, former South Carolina Governor Haley, 51, and millionaire entrepreneur Ramaswamy, 37, announced their candidacy from the Republican Party for the top US post earlier this year.
They will contest against former US president Donald Trump, who is leading in the race for the Republican Party’s nomination for 2024 despite the legal challenges he is facing.
Republicans will meet in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, from July 15-18, 2024, for their national convention to formally select their party’s next presidential nominee.
Singh also called himself the “only pureblood candidate” because he “never gave in to the COVID vaccinations.” He ran in the Republican primaries for governor of New Jersey in 2017 and 2021, for a House seat in 2018 and for Senate in 2020 but was unsuccessful in winning the Republican Party’s nomination, the report said.
In his most recent run for governor, he campaigned as a more conservative option more closely aligned with former president Trump than the eventual nominee, Jack Ciattarelli, but he came in third for the nomination.
Singh is one of several long-shot candidates in the race, including former Cranston, Rhode Island, Mayor Steve Laffey, Michigan businessman Perry Johnson and Texas pastor Ryan Binkley, it said.