Usha Chilukuri Vance, wife of JD Vance, who was announced as Donald Trump's running mate for the upcoming US presidential elections on Monday, brings a wealth of credentials and a deep connection to Indian values and culture.
A litigator at a national firm, Usha Vance is the daughter of Indian immigrants and boasts an impressive academic background. She holds 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.
Born Usha Chilukuri, she has built a distinguished career in the legal field, having clerked for Supreme Court Justices John Roberts and Brett Kavanaugh before his nomination to the Court.
Raised in a suburb of San Diego, California, Usha was brought up with a strong emphasis on education and hard work. Her academic achievements include serving as Managing Editor of the Yale Journal of Law & Technology and Executive Development Editor of The Yale Law Journal, according to Munger, Tolles & Olson law firm.
After her intensive extracurricular activities at Yale, she continued her studies as a Gates Fellow at Cambridge, where she engaged with left-wing and liberal groups. She was a registered Democrat in 2014.
Usha and JD Vance met at Yale Law School and married in Kentucky in 2014, with a separate ceremony presided over by a Hindu priest, as noted by the New York Times. The couple has three children together.
Usha Vance has played a subtle yet significant role in her husband's success, helping him organize his thoughts on the social decline in rural white America, which inspired his best-selling memoir, "Hillbilly Elegy," later adapted into a film directed by Ron Howard in 2020.
In the past, she has made rare appearances with Vance as he sought the Ohio Senate seat.
As the US presidential elections draw near, former President Donald Trump selected JD Vance as his running mate, confirmed through a social media post on Monday. Speaking to ANI, AI Mason, a US-based global real estate investment advisor and well-known entrepreneur, said, "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 the USA and India," Mason added.
In an earlier interview with Fox & Friends, Usha Chilukuri Vance and her Senator husband discussed their differing faiths and speculated on his potential as a Vice Presidential pick.
"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," Usha Vance said.
When asked about her support for JD Vance, Usha told Fox, "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."
The interview was conducted three weeks before the announcement of JD Vance as Trump's running mate for the upcoming US presidential polls.
JD Vance was born James David Bowman in Middletown, Ohio, to a mother who struggled with addiction and a father who left the family when he was a toddler. He was raised by his grandparents.
The Trump campaign indicates that following his near-death experience, the former president will call for unity in the face of tragedy, rather than criticizing his political adversaries, as he faces off with President Biden in the 2024 election rematch.
