Washington: Republican candidate Bobby Jindal, who had last year lost the gubernatorial race in Louisiana State, today (Nov 3, 2004) won the US Congress elections beating five other opponents, becoming the first Indian American do so in nearly five decades.

The 33-year-old poster boy of the Republican party, Jindal polled 78 per cent or 213,610 votes as against his nearest Democrat rival Roy Armstrong who polled 7 per cent or 18,531 votes. Jindal will represent the first district that covers New Orleans which was earlier vacated by David Vitter.

Jindal, a converted Christian, is the second Indian American to be elected to the US Congress after Dilip Singh Saund of California in 1956.

The Indian American, who had lost the Governor's race to Democrat Catherine Blanco last year, is seen as eager to promote diversity with a great future in Capitol Hill in view of his superb record in health care administration.

The former Rhodes scholar and a Government whiz kid, Jindal will represent an area of paradoxes: the wealthiest district in a chronically poor State and the one-time power base of Ku Klux Klansman David Duke whose legislative district was located within it.