Nearly 5% of New Jersey’s population is South Asian, more than any other state in the nation. Over 1 million Asians live in New Jersey, with Indian Americans making up the largest ethnic group. South Asians have put down roots all over the state but are especially concentrated in Middlesex County in places like Edison, Plainsboro, and South Brunswick where South Asians make up around 40% of the population living in those areas.

Upendra Chivikula was the first Indian American elected to the New Jersey legislature in 2001 and since then, South Asians have had electoral success throughout the state. Ravi Bhalla was the first Sikh to be directly elected mayor of any American city when he became mayor of Hoboken in 2017. At the time, he was considered unelectable because of his appearance. By his re-election in 2021, he was uncontested. In 2019, Governor Murphy appointed Gurbir Grewal as the first Sikh state attorney general in the United States.

From school board to the legislature, there are more South Asian elected officials in New Jersey than any other state. The community has also been critical to elections, including the narrow margin by which Governor Phil Murphy was reelected by less than 85,000 votes.