Judy Chu, 56, First Chinese American Woman Elected to Congress
July 14, 2009
MONTEREY PARK—Democrat Judy Chu was elected to Congress on Tuesday by an overwhelming margin over Republican Betty Chu and became the first Chinese American woman to win a seat in Congress.
With results in from all 32nd Congressional District precincts, Judy Chu defeated Betty Chu by a nearly 2-to-1 margin. The Chus are cousins by marriage.
In a room at Nick’s Taste of Texas in West Covina packed with members of the Chinese-American media, Judy Chu claimed victory late Tuesday night.
“What a victory,” said Chu, who is on the state Board of Equalization. “It’s incredible to be standing here tonight.”
She said she will fly to Washington, D.C., today and will be sworn in Thursday. Chu joins Rep. Mike Honda (D-San Jose) and Rep. Doris Matsui (D-Sacramento), the other Asian Americans currently serving in Congress from California.
The Asian American House Caucus also includes Rep. Robert C. Scott (D-Virginia) who is of mixed Filipino and African American ancestry; Chinese American Rep. David Wu (D-Oregon); Indian American Rep. Bobby Jindal (R-Louisiana); Japanese American Rep. Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii); Filipino ancestry Rep. Steve Austria (r-Ohio) and Vietnamese American Ahn Joseph Cao (R-Louisiana).
Hawaii’s late Republican U.S. Senator Hiram Fong was the first Chinese American in Congress, serving three terms from 1959 to 1977. Fong died in 2004.
Judy Chu won 61.7 percent of the votes, Betty Chu won 33.1 percent, and Libertarian Christopher Agrella was in a distant third place with 5.2 percent.
Election officials believe a record-low number of voters showed up for the special election, which was held to replace former Rep. Hilda Solis, who left the seat to become labor secretary.
Chu won her first elected office, a seat on the Garvey School Board, in 1985. Three years later she captured a City Council seat in Monterey Park, after she and her husband, attorney Mike Eng, helped battle a racially divisive “English-only” campaign in the rapidly changing city. In 2001, after two unsuccessful attempts, she was elected to the state Assembly, then won a seat on the state Board of Equalization in 2001.
