Tulsi Gabbard
Tulsi Gabbard (born April 12, 1981) is an American politician and member of the Democratic Party who has been the United States Representative for Hawaii's second congressional district since 2013. She is also a Vice-Chair of the Democratic National Committee. Elected in 2012, she is the first American Samoan and the first Hindu member of the United States Congress, and, along with Tammy Duckworth, one of its first female combat veterans. Gabbard previously served in the Hawaii House of Representatives from 2002 to 2004, becoming the youngest woman in the United States to be elected to a state legislature. She declined to seek a second term after volunteering for a 12-month combat tour in Iraq. She returned to the United States in 2006 and worked for U.S. Senator Daniel Akaka, then volunteering for another deployment to the Middle East in 2009. After returning to Hawaii, she was elected to the Honolulu City Council, where she served from 2011 to 2012. In 2012, she ran for the open second congressional district and won the primary with 55%, scoring an upset win over former Honolulu Mayor Mufi Hannemann. She won the general election with 81% of the vote and in the House of Representatives, she serves on the Armed Services, Foreign Affairs and Homeland Security committees. She is also currently a Military Police company commander with the Hawaii Army National Guard.