List of Asian Americans and Pacific Islands Americans in the United States Congress

This is a list of Asian Americans and Pacific Islander Americans in the U.S. Congress.

Map of congressional districts represented by Asian Americans or Pacific Islander Americans in the 117th Congress.

  State had an Asian Senator at the beginning of the 117th Congress

  State has in the past had an Asian Senator

Asian Americans are Americans of Asian descent. The term refers to a panethnic group that includes diverse populations with ancestral origins in East Asia, South Asia or Southeast Asia, as defined by the U.S. Census Bureau.^[1]

Pacific Islander Americans, also known as Oceanian Americans, Pacific Islander Americans or Native Hawaiian and/or other Pacific Islander Americans, are Americans who have ethnic ancestry among the indigenous peoples of Oceania (viz. Polynesians, Melanesians and Micronesians). For its purposes, the U.S. Census also counts Indigenous Australians as part of this group.^[2][3]

As of June 3, 2024, there are 18 representatives and 2 senators of Asian-American descent who are currently serving in Congress. In addition, there are three non-voting delegates of Pacific Islander descent who currently are also serving. Since 1900, 21 Pacific Islanders have been elected to the House of Representatives (18 of them as non-voting Resident Commissioners, Delegates or Resident Representatives) and one has been elected to the U.S. Senate. Hawaii was the first territory to send a Pacific Islander to the House of Representatives (in 1900) and was also the first state to send a Pacific Islander to the U.S. Senate (in 1990). Since 1957, 41 Asian Americans have been elected as U.S. Representatives and 9 as U.S. Senators. Hawaii was the first of four states to send an Asian American to the Senate (1959) and Illinois is the most recent state to elect a senator of similar descent for the first time (2016). With respect to the House of Representatives, California was the first of 13 states to elect an Asian American to the House (1956), and Oklahoma is the most recent to do so for the first time (2020). Three Asian-American women have been elected to the Senate (two of whom currently are incumbents and represent Hawaii and Illinois, respectively), and 13 have been elected to the House (nine of whom currently are incumbents) from seven separate states.

Out of the 20 current Asian-American members of Congress, 16 are Democrats (three senators and 13 representatives) and four are Republicans (four representatives).

Senate

(Note: Senators are organized first in chronological order according to their first term in office, then second in alphabetical order according to their surname.)

Senator		Asian and/or Pacific Islander ethnicity	Party	State	Tenure			Notes
Portrait	Name (birth–death)				Term start	Term end	Length of service
	Hiram Fong (1906–2004)	Chinese[S 1]	Republican	Hawaii	August 21, 1959	January 3, 1977	17 years, 135 days	Retired
	Daniel Inouye (1924–2012)	Japanese[S 2]	Democratic	Hawaii	January 3, 1963	December 17, 2012	49 years, 349 days	Died in office
	S. I. Hayakawa (1906–1992)	Japanese	Republican	California	January 2, 1977	January 3, 1983	6 years, 1 day	Retired
	Spark Matsunaga (1916–1990)	Japanese	Democratic	Hawaii	January 3, 1977	April 15, 1990	13 years, 102 days	Died in office
	Daniel Akaka (1924–2018)	Hawaiian, Chinese[S 3]	Democratic	Hawaii	May 16, 1990	January 3, 2013	22 years, 232 days	Initially appointed; later re-elected Retired
	John Ensign (born 1958)	Filipino[S 4]	Republican	Nevada	January 3, 2001	May 3, 2011	10 years, 120 days	Resigned
	Mazie Hirono (born 1947)	Japanese[S 5]	Democratic	Hawaii	January 3, 2013	Incumbent	11 years, 355 days
	Tammy Duckworth (born 1968)	Thai, Chinese[S 6]	Democratic	Illinois	January 3, 2017	Incumbent	7 years, 355 days
	Kamala Harris (born 1964)	Indian[S 7]	Democratic	California	January 3, 2017	January 18, 2021	4 years, 15 days	Resigned to become Vice President
	Andy Kim (born 1982)	Korean[S 8]	Democratic	New Jersey	December 9, 2024	Incumbent	14 days	Appointed early following his election to replace the resigning George Helmy, who was appointed to replace Bob Menendez.

Notes

1. First American of Chinese ancestry elected to Congress
2. First Japanese American elected to the Senate
3. First Native Hawaiian to serve in the Senate
4. First person of Filipino ancestry elected to the Senate
5. First Asian-American woman elected to the Senate
6. First Thai American elected to the Senate
7. First person of South Asian ancestry elected to the Senate; together with Pramila Jayapal, first Indian-American woman elected to Congress
8. First Korean American elected to the Senate

House of Representatives

(Note: Representatives are organized first in chronological order according to their first term in office, then second in alphabetical order according to their surname.)

Representative		Asian and/or Pacific Islander ethnicity	Party	State	Tenure			Notes
Portrait	Name (birth–death)				Term start	Term end	Length of service
	Dalip Singh Saund (1899–1973)	Indian[H 1]	Democratic	California	January 3, 1957	January 3, 1963	6 years, 0 days	Lost reelection
	Daniel Inouye (1924–2012)	Japanese[H 2]	Democratic	Hawaii	August 21, 1959	January 3, 1963	3 years, 135 days	Retired to run successfully for U.S. Senate
	Spark Matsunaga (1916–1990)	Japanese	Democratic	Hawaii	January 3, 1963	January 3, 1977	14 years, 0 days	Retired to run successfully for U.S. Senate
	Patsy Mink (1927–2002)	Japanese[H 3]	Democratic	Hawaii	January 3, 1965	January 3, 1977	12 years, 0 days	Retired to run unsuccessfully for U.S. Senate
					September 22, 1990	September 28, 2002	12 years, 6 days	Died in office
	Norman Mineta (1931–2022)	Japanese	Democratic	California	January 3, 1975	October 10, 1995	20 years, 280 days	Resigned Later served as Secretary of Commerce and Secretary of Transportation
	Daniel Akaka (1924–2018)	Hawaiian, Chinese[H 4]	Democratic	Hawaii	January 3, 1977	May 16, 1990	13 years, 133 days	Resigned after being appointed to the U.S. Senate
	Bob Matsui (1941–2005)	Japanese	Democratic	California	January 3, 1979	January 1, 2005	25 years, 364 days	Died in office
	Mervyn Dymally (1926–2012)	Indian[H 5]	Democratic	California	January 3, 1981	January 3, 1993	12 years, 0 days	Retired
	Pat Saiki (born 1930)	Japanese	Republican	Hawaii	January 3, 1987	January 3, 1991	4 years, 0 days	Retired to run unsuccessfully for U.S. Senate
	Jay Kim (born 1939)	Korean[H 6]	Republican	California	January 3, 1993	January 3, 1999	6 years, 0 days	Lost renomination
	Bobby Scott (born 1947)	Filipino[H 7]	Democratic	Virginia	January 3, 1993	Incumbent	31 years, 355 days
	John Ensign (born 1958)	Filipino	Republican	Nevada	January 3, 1995	January 3, 1999	4 years, 0 days	Retired to run unsuccessfully for U.S. Senate Later elected to the U.S. Senate from Nevada
	David Wu (born 1955)	Taiwanese[H 8]	Democratic	Oregon	January 3, 1999	August 3, 2011	12 years, 212 days	Resigned
	Mike Honda (born 1941)	Japanese	Democratic	California	January 3, 2001	January 3, 2017	16 years, 0 days	Lost reelection
	Bobby Jindal (born 1971)	Indian	Republican	Louisiana	January 3, 2005	January 14, 2008	3 years, 11 days	Resigned to run successfully for Governor
	Doris Matsui (born 1944)	Japanese	Democratic	California	March 8, 2005	Incumbent	19 years, 290 days	Elected to succeed late husband
	Mazie Hirono (born 1947)	Japanese	Democratic	Hawaii	January 3, 2007	January 3, 2013	6 years, 0 days	Retired to run successfully for U.S. Senate
	Steve Austria (born 1958)	Filipino	Republican	Ohio	January 3, 2009	January 3, 2013	4 years, 0 days	Retired following decennial redistricting
	Joseph Cao (born 1967)	Vietnamese[H 9]	Republican	Louisiana	January 3, 2009	January 3, 2011	2 years, 0 days	Lost reelection
	Judy Chu (born 1953)	Chinese[H 10]	Democratic	California	July 14, 2009	Incumbent	15 years, 162 days
	Charles Djou (born 1970)	Thai, Chinese[H 11]	Republican	Hawaii	May 22, 2010	January 3, 2011	226 days	Lost reelection
	Hansen Clarke (born 1957)	Bangladeshi[H 12]	Democratic	Michigan	January 3, 2011	January 3, 2013	2 years, 0 days	Lost renomination following decennial redistricting
	Colleen Hanabusa (born 1951)	Japanese	Democratic	Hawaii	January 3, 2011	January 3, 2015	4 years, 0 days	Retired to run unsuccessfully for U.S. Senate
					November 14, 2016	January 3, 2019	2 years, 50 days	Retired to run unsuccessfully for Governor
	Ami Bera (born 1965)	Indian	Democratic	California	January 3, 2013	Incumbent	11 years, 355 days
	Tammy Duckworth (born 1968)	Thai, Chinese[H 13]	Democratic	Illinois	January 3, 2013	January 3, 2017	4 years, 0 days	Retired to run successfully for U.S. Senate
	Tulsi Gabbard (born 1981)	Samoan[H 14]	Democratic	Hawaii	January 3, 2013	January 3, 2021	8 years, 0 days	Retired after having run unsuccessfully for President
	Grace Meng (born 1975)	Taiwanese[H 15]	Democratic	New York	January 3, 2013	Incumbent	11 years, 355 days
	Mark Takano (born 1960)	Japanese[H 16]	Democratic	California	January 3, 2013	Incumbent	11 years, 355 days
	Ted Lieu (born 1969)	Taiwanese	Democratic	California	January 3, 2015	Incumbent	9 years, 355 days
	Mark Takai (1967–2016)	Japanese	Democratic	Hawaii	January 3, 2015	July 20, 2016	1 year, 199 days	Died in office
	Pramila Jayapal (born 1965)	Indian[H 17]	Democratic	Washington	January 3, 2017	Incumbent	7 years, 355 days
	Ro Khanna (born 1976)	Indian	Democratic	California	January 3, 2017	Incumbent	7 years, 355 days
	Raja Krishnamoorthi (born 1973)	Indian	Democratic	Illinois	January 3, 2017	Incumbent	7 years, 355 days
	Stephanie Murphy (born 1978)	Vietnamese[H 18]	Democratic	Florida	January 3, 2017	January 3, 2023	6 years, 0 days	Retired
	TJ Cox (born 1963)	Filipino, Chinese	Democratic	California	January 3, 2019	January 3, 2021	2 years, 0 days	Lost reelection
	Andy Kim (born 1982)	Korean	Democratic	New Jersey	January 3, 2019	December 8, 2024	5 years, 340 days	Resigned in order to accept early appointment to the U.S. Senate following his election and the resignation of interim Senator George Helmy
	Stephanie Bice (born 1973)	Pakistani[H 19]	Republican	Oklahoma	January 3, 2021	Incumbent	3 years, 355 days
	Kai Kahele (born 1974)	Hawaiian	Democratic	Hawaii	January 3, 2021	January 3, 2023	2 years, 0 days	Retired to run unsuccessfully for Governor
	Young Kim (born 1962)	Korean[H 20]	Republican	California	January 3, 2021	Incumbent	3 years, 355 days
	Michelle Steel (born 1955)	Korean[H 20]	Republican	California	January 3, 2021	January 3, 2025	3 years, 355 days
	Marilyn Strickland (born 1962)	Korean[H 20]	Democratic	Washington	January 3, 2021	Incumbent	3 years, 355 days
	Shri Thanedar (born 1955)	Indian	Democratic	Michigan	January 3, 2023	Incumbent	1 year, 355 days
	Jill Tokuda (born 1976)	Japanese	Democratic	Hawaii	January 3, 2023	Incumbent	1 year, 355 days
	Vince Fong (born 1979)	Chinese	Republican	California	June 3, 2024	Incumbent	203 days

Representatives–elect

Representative–elect		Asian and/or Pacific Islander ethnicity	Party	State	Expected term start	Notes
								Dave Min (born 1976)	Korean	Democratic	California	January 3, 2025	Elected on November 5, 2024
	Suhas Subramanyam (born 1986)	Indian	Democratic	Virginia	January 3, 2025	Elected on November 5, 2024
	Derek Tran (born 1980–1981)	Vietnamese	Democratic	California	January 3, 2025	Elected on November 5, 2024

Notes

1. First AAPI person elected to Congress as a non-delegate, and also first Indian American elected to Congress
2. First Japanese American elected to Congress
3. First Asian-American woman elected to Congress
4. First Native Hawaiian to serve as a voting member of Congress
5. First Dougla elected to Congress
6. First Korean American elected to Congress
7. First American-born Filipino elected to Congress
8. First Taiwanese American elected to Congress
9. First Vietnamese American elected to Congress
10. First Chinese-American woman elected to Congress
11. First Thai American elected to Congress
12. First person of Bangladeshi ancestry elected to Congress
13. First Thai-American woman elected to Congress
14. First woman of Pacific Islander ancestry elected to Congress
15. First Taiwanese-American woman elected to Congress
16. First openly gay person of AAPI ancestry elected to Congress
17. Together with Kamala Harris, first Indian-American woman elected to Congress
18. First Vietnamese-American woman elected to Congress
19. First person of Pakistani ancestry elected to Congress
20. Reps. Kim, Steel, and Strickland are collectively the first Korean-American women elected to Congress

House delegates (non-voting members)

Resident Commissioners were House delegates from the Philippines, then an American territory.^[4][5][6] Two were elected at-large by the Philippine Legislature from 1907 to 1935, and, following the establishment of the Commonwealth of the Philippines, a single Resident Commissioner was appointed by the President of the Philippines (with the consent of the Commonwealth's Commission on Appointments) from 1936 to 1946.

From 1978 to 2009, the Northern Mariana Islands elected four Resident Representatives who had no privileges in the House. American Samoa similarly elected three Delegates at-large from 1971 to 1981 and Guam elected one Washington Representative from 1965 to 1973.

(Note: Delegates are organized first in chronological order according to their first term in office, then second in alphabetical order according to their surname.)

Delegate		Asian and/or Pacific Islander ethnicity	Party	Territory	Tenure			Notes
Portrait	Name (birth–death)				Term start	Term end	Length of service
	Robert Wilcox (1855–1903)	Hawaiian	Home Rule	Hawaii	November 6, 1900	March 4, 1903	2 years, 118 days	Lost reelection
	Jonah Kalanianaʻole (1871–1922)	Hawaiian	Republican	Hawaii	March 4, 1903	January 7, 1922	18 years, 309 days	Died in office
	Benito Legarda (1853–1915)	Filipino	Federalist	Philippine Islands	November 22, 1907	March 4, 1912	4 years, 103 days	Retired
	Pablo Ocampo (1853–1925)	Filipino	Democratic	Philippine Islands	November 22, 1907	November 22, 1909	2 years, 0 days	Retired
	Manuel L. Quezón (1878–1944)	Filipino	Nacionalista	Philippine Islands	November 23, 1909	October 15, 1916	6 years, 327 days	Retired Later served as President of the Philippines
	Manuel Earnshaw (1862–1936)	Filipino	Independent	Philippine Islands	March 4, 1913	March 4, 1917	4 years, 0 days	Retired
	Jaime C. de Veyra (1873–1963)	Filipino	Nacionalista	Philippine Islands	March 4, 1917	March 4, 1923	6 years, 0 days	Retired
	Teodoro R. Yangco (1861–1939)	Filipino, Chinese	Independent	Philippine Islands	March 4, 1917	March 4, 1920	3 years, 0 days	Retired
	Isauro Gabaldon (1875–1942)	Filipino	Nacionalista	Philippine Islands	March 4, 1920	July 16, 1928	8 years, 124 days	Resigned
	Pedro Guevara (1879–1938)	Filipino	Nacionalista	Philippine Islands	March 4, 1923	February 14, 1936	12 years, 347 days	Retired
	William Jarrett (1877–1929)	Hawaiian	Democratic	Hawaii	March 4, 1923	March 4, 1927	4 years, 0 days	Lost reelection
	Victor Houston (1876–1959)	Hawaiian	Republican	Hawaii	March 4, 1927	March 4, 1933	6 years, 0 days	Lost reelection
	Camilo Osías (1889–1976)	Filipino	Nacionalista	Philippine Islands	March 4, 1929	January 3, 1935	5 years, 305 days	Retired
	Francisco Afan Delgado (1886–1964)	Filipino	Nacionalista	Philippine Islands	January 3, 1935	February 14, 1936	1 year, 42 days	Retired
	Samuel King (1886–1959)	Hawaiian	Republican	Hawaii	January 3, 1935	January 3, 1943	8 years, 0 days	Resigned
	Quintín Paredes (1884–1973)	Filipino	Nacionalista	Philippines	February 14, 1936	September 29, 1938	2 years, 228 days	Resigned
	Carlos P. Romulo (1899–1985)	Filipino	Liberal	Philippines	August 10, 1944	July 4, 1946	1 year, 328 days	Office eliminated following the independence of the Philippines
	Antonio Won Pat (1908–1987)	Chamorro, Chinese[D 1]	Democratic	Guam	January 3, 1973	January 3, 1985	12 years, 0 days	Lost reelection
	Eddie Pangelinan (born 1945)	Chamorro	Democratic (1978–1983)	Northern Mariana Islands	January 9, 1978	January 9, 1984	5 years, 130 days	Lost reelection
			Republican (1983–1984)
	Fofó Sunia (born 1937)	Samoan[D 2]	Democratic	American Samoa	January 3, 1981	September 6, 1988	7 years, 247 days	Resigned
	Froilan Tenorio (1939–2020)	Chamorro	Democratic	Northern Mariana Islands	January 9, 1984	January 8, 1990	5 years, 364 days	Retired to run unsuccessfully for Governor of the Northern Mariana Islands Later successfully ran for Governor of the Northern Mariana Islands
	Ben Blaz (1928–2014)	Chamorro	Republican	Guam	January 3, 1985	January 3, 1993	8 years, 0 days	Lost reelection
	Eni Faleomavaega (1943–2017)	Samoan	Democratic	American Samoa	January 3, 1989	January 3, 2015	26 years, 0 days	Lost reelection
	Juan Babauta (born 1953)	Chamorro, Carolinian[D 3]	Republican	Northern Mariana Islands	January 8, 1990	January 14, 2002	12 years, 6 days	Retired to run successfully for Governor of the Northern Mariana Islands
	Robert Underwood (born 1948)	Chamorro	Democratic	Guam	January 3, 1993	January 3, 2003	10 years, 0 days	Retired to run unsuccessfully for Governor of Guam
	Pete Tenorio (born 1941)	Chamorro	Republican	Northern Mariana Islands	January 14, 2002	January 3, 2009	6 years, 355 days	Office replaced by Delegate Lost election to new office
	Michael San Nicolas (born 1981)	Chamorro	Democratic	Guam	January 3, 2019	January 3, 2023	4 years, 0 days	Retired to run unsuccessfully for Governor of Guam
	Gregorio Sablan (born 1955)	Chamorro	Independent (2009)	Northern Mariana Islands	January 3, 2009	January 3, 2025	15 years, 355 days
			Democratic (2009–2014)
			Independent (2014–2021)
			Democratic (2021–present)
	Amata Radewagen (born 1947)	Samoan, Hawaiian	Republican	American Samoa	January 3, 2015	Incumbent	9 years, 355 days
	James Moylan (born 1962)	Chamorro	Republican	Guam	January 3, 2023	Incumbent	1 year, 355 days

Delegates–elect

Delegate–elect		Asian and/or Pacific Islander ethnicity	Party	Territory	Expected term start	Notes
								Kimberlyn King-Hinds (born 1986)	Chamorro	Republican	Northern Mariana Islands	January 3, 2025	Elected on November 5, 2024

Notes

1. First Chamorro person elected to Congress
2. First Samoan delegate elected to Congress
3. First (and so far only) Carolinian person elected to Congress

See also

• Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus
• List of Asian Australian politicians

References

1. Karen R. Humes; Nicholas A. Jones; Roberto R. Ramirez (March 2011). "Overview of Race and Hispanic Origin: 2010" (PDF). United States Census Bureau. U.S. Department of Commerce. Retrieved January 5, 2012.
2. University of Virginia. Geospatial and Statistical Data Center. "1990 PUMS Ancestry Codes." 2003. August 30, 2007."1990 Census of Population and Housing Public Use Microdata Sample". Archived from the original on August 25, 2007. Retrieved August 31, 2007.
3. "Government Information". www.lib.umich.edu. Retrieved 2022-11-16.
4. "Map Layer Info". National Atlas of the United States. United States Department of the Interior. July 23, 2012. Archived from the original on January 4, 2013. Retrieved December 10, 2012. The Philippines became a territory of the United States after the Spanish–American War.
5. Berhow, Mark (2012). American Defenses of Corregidor and Manila Bay 1898–1945. Osprey Publishing. p. 6. ISBN 978-1-78200-435-6. Retrieved December 10, 2012.
6. Pyong Gap, Min, ed. (2005). Asian Americans: Contemporary Trends and Issues. Pine Forge Press. p. 183. ISBN 978-1-4129-0556-5. Retrieved 10 December 2012.

Further reading

• Tong, Lorraine H. (2003). "Asian Pacific Americans in the United States Congress". Congressional Research Service 97-398, 9–14.
• "Rise of the Wahine Documentary Film". Archived from the original on March 31, 2018. Retrieved February 29, 2020., highlighting the role of the first woman of color and first female Asian-American to serve in Congress, Patsy Mink.