Telugu-origin Usha Chilukuri set to become ‘Second Lady’ of US

Usha Chilukuri Vance, wife of Donald Trump's running mate J.D. Vance, is set to become the first Indian-origin 'Second Lady' of the United States.

The 38-year-old Indian-American lawyer has her roots in Andhra Pradesh and the news of her elevation has already sparked celebrations in Vadluru village in West Godavari district from where her family hails.

People in the village burst firecrackers and distributed sweets after the victory of the Republican ticket of Trump and Vance in the US Presidential elections.

Earlier, some villagers offered prayers for the victory of Trump and Vance, saying this would further strengthen the India-US relations.

Andhra Pradesh Minister for Information Technology and Electronics Nara Lokesh said that this is a very special moment for the people of Andhra Pradesh, especially West Godavari district.

"The Second Lady designate, Usha Vance has roots in AP. We’re proud as people of AP Origin continue to make their mark in various spheres across the world,” said Minister Lokesh, who is the son of Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu.

Vance, the 40-year-old Ohio Senator and the running mate of President-elect Trump, is set to become the Vice President. He married the Yale-graduated lawyer in 2014. The couple has three children – Ewan, 6, Vivek, 4, and Mirabel, 2.

Usha’s parents Radhakrishna Chilukuri and Lakshmi Chilukuri had migrated to the US in 1980. Usha, one of the three children of Radhakrishna and Lakshmi, was born and brought up in San Diego (California).

A marine molecular biologist and biochemist, Professor Lakshmi Chilukuri is Provost of the Sixth College at the University of California, San Diego University. Radhakrishna Chilukuri, also known as Dr Krish Chilukuri, is a lecturer, Academic Affairs, College of Engineering, Department of Aerospace Engineering at the San Diego State University.

Usha, who has been passionate about books since her childhood, holds a bachelor's degree in History from the Yale University and a Master of Philosophy degree from the University of Cambridge Later, she joined Yale Law School where she met Vance. Their friendship turned into love and they tied the knot in 2014. The couple was blessed by a Hindu priest in a separate ceremony.

Usha worked as a corporate lawyer and litigator for some years. She was a Law Clerk to two Chief Justices of the Supreme Court and argued civil cases belonging to the education, medical, and defence sectors. She was also associated with the Supreme Court Advocacy Clinic, Media Freedom and Information Access Clinic, and Iraqi Refugee Assistance Projects. She is currently working as a litigator in the National Legal Agency.

Interestingly while studying at Cambridge, Usha worked with left-wing and liberal groups and registered her name as a Democratic Party in 2014. Four years later, she registered with the Republican Party for voting from Ohio. Usha had helped Vance organise a meeting on ‘Social decline in White America’ that formed the basis of his 2016 bestseller "Hillbilly Elegy". She played a key role in Vance’s Senate campaigns in 2016 and 2022. She was instrumental in her husband’s election as Ohio senator in 2022 and was also responsible for his campaign for the office of Vice-President.