Khanna, Ro, 1976-

Rohit Khanna (born September 13, 1976) is an American politician. A member of the Democratic Party, he has served as the U.S. Representative from California's 17th congressional district since 2017.

Born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, he graduated from Council Rock High School in Bucks County, Pennsylvania before earning an A.B. from the University of Chicago and a J.D. from Yale Law School. After graduation, Khanna clerked for federal appeals judge Morris Sheppard Arnold in Little Rock, Arkansas. In private practice, he specialized in intellectual property law. In 2009 President Barack Obama appointed Khanna deputy assistant secretary of the United States Department of Commerce. In that role, Khanna led international trade missions and worked to increase United States exports. Khanna resigned from the Department of Commerce in August 2011 to join Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati, a law firm in Silicon Valley. Khanna was a visiting lecturer of economics at Stanford University from 2012 to 2016, taught law at the Santa Clara University School of Law, and taught American jurisprudence at San Francisco State University. In 2004, Khanna challenged incumbent Democratic Congressman Tom Lantos in California's 12th congressional district, losing the primary handily. In 2014, Khanna challenged incumbent Democratic Congressman Mike Honda in California's 17th congressional district, narrowly losing in the general election.

In a 2016 rematch with Honda, Khanna easily defeated the incumbent. In Congress, Khanna is working to ensure our nation is focused on creating new tech jobs across the country, particularly for American left behind, and investing in science and technology to win the 21st Century. This includes job training programs, economic development initiatives, re-wiring the U.S. labor market, and debt-free college to help working families prepare for the future. He is also committed to advancing a foreign policy of military restraint and diplomatic engagement. Instead of spending trillions on wars overseas, Khanna believes we should invest in priorities at home like Medicare for All, Debt Free College, and a new 21st Century infrastructure. He sits on the House Committees on Agriculture, Armed Services, and Oversight and Reform, is the Deputy Whip of the Congressional Progressive Caucus; serves as an Assistant Whip for the Democratic Caucus and is the Democratic Vice Chair of the House Caucus on India and Indian Americans.