By Eric Wu, bostonese.com
Philadelphia, July 24, 2015, — Lindy Li updated her Lindy Li for U.S. Congress Facebook page to thank her supporter for their contributions on July 17. “Starting in late May, together we raised $128,235 in about just 5 weeks. A total of 488 donors contributed to our campaign, with some giving just a few dollars, though these generous souls gave all they could. We raised this amount without the help of any consultants or political operatives — indeed, all of this was because of you, a grassroots effort through and through. And this was just the warm-up round,” wrote Ms. Li.
Lindy Li (2nd from left, back row) with her supports at a campaign event in July 2015 (from Facebook).
Lindy Li also shared some photos from her campaign events on the Facebook page. “Below are some of my beloved moments with you. Thank you for sharing your life with me,” commented Ms. Li.
At age 24, Lindy Li is one of the youngest candidates for US Congress. Her parents immigrated to the United States from Chengdu, China. Ms. Li hopes to become the youngest US congresswoman elected on Nov. 8, 2016 in the seventh congressional district of Pennsylvania.
Graduated from Princeton University in June 2012, Lindy Li has won many awards. As a philosophy major, Li received the W. Sanderson Detwiler 1903 Prize as a senior. She was president of the Class of 2012 for three and a half years, a record in the history of Princeton University. In that position, Li served as chair of the Senior Class Commencement Committee, organized events such as a class cruise and trip to Washington, D.C., for the 2009 presidential inauguration. Li was also a four-year member of the Honor Committee and a member of the Princeton Running Club.
Li declared her candidacy for the 2016 U.S. Congress and gave up the opportunity to work at an investment bank. When talking about the reasons of participating in the election, Li said that her goal was to dedicate herself to work on public policy and she hoped to represent the entire ethnic groups and communities of Chinese Americans to express their idea and opinions in the US.
Li and her campaign team (file photo).
Li’s mother said during a campaign event in northern Virginia in June 2015 that her family would fully support Li’s campaign event though it might Li to get elected as a member of racial minorities. She expressed gratitude to the supporters and advocates from the greater Washington D.C. area and believed that Li would be more courageous, assiduous and modest.
One of Lindy’s supporters commented on Facebook: “I live in the sixth district in Pennsylvania and cannot vote for Lindy. However, decisions made by members of the Congress will impact everyone. It’s important for us to support all the candidates in all districts. Lindy has achieved a lot, and she will help make a difference in the Congress.”
Li summarized her own experience and goals in a letter to supporters:”I’ve seen my parents’ dedication to their family and jobs since they moved to this country. America is a place full of challenges and opportunities. I always expect to devote myself to this great nation with a grateful heart. I am not an extremist, but a political centrist.”
You can find out details about Lindy Li’s campaign and her ideas on better support for the middle class, affordable education system, incentive policy for small-size and average-size businesses, and the increases of women in elected offices at lindyli.com.