NRI PULSE STAFF REPORT
Ashburn, VA – Krystle Kaul, an Indian American candidate from Virginia, has raised $1 million for her campaign for the U.S. House of Representatives. This places her among a small number of first-time candidates to reach this milestone.
Kaul has Kashmiri and Punjabi roots and practices both Hinduism and Sikhism. She is the granddaughter and daughter of immigrants. Her grandfather arrived in the United States with a dream of a better life, worked as an insurance agent, and built a life for his family in New York.
Kaul has had a career in defense and intelligence. She has worked at U.S. Central Command and the Pentagon, with experience in the Middle East and South Asia. She has held positions including Director (GS-15) at the Defense Threat Reduction Agency at the Department of Defense, Director of Strategic Communications for the U.S. Air Force at General Dynamics Information Technology, and Intelligence Political-Military Expert at U.S. Central Command.
After former Secretary of Defense General Mattis resigned, Kaul left her position as well. She then started a small business that assists 8(a) firms, disabled veteran and women-owned businesses, and large companies such as McKinsey, Bain, and Bank of New York Mellon with their technology solutions. She also contributed to the Chips Act task force at Intel Corporation and collaborated with Lockheed Martin to support U.S. manufacturing jobs. Kaul teaches a course at MIT’s MBA Executive Program through 2U, Inc.
Kaul has also worked on various humanitarian projects, including building electronic villages with UN Women, development projects in Afghanistan with USAID, and disaster relief in Haiti through the American Red Cross. She has collaborated with policy think tanks like the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, Ibn Khaldun Center for Development and Democracy, Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, Center for Strategic and International Studies, and RAND Corporation.
Kaul lives in Ashburn, VA, and is running to represent Virginia’s 10th District. If elected, she will become the second Indian American woman to serve in the U.S. House of Representatives, after Pramila Jayapal of Washington State.
Cover photo credit: Krystle Kaul for Congress website.
