Bhutanese American elected to City Council

Resettled Bhutanese in the US Bhuwan Pyakurel has been elected as the councilor to the Reynoldburg City Council in Ohio in a latest election. He is the first Bhutanese-American to win any election in the US. 

Receiving 1352 votes (55% of those cast), Pyakurel, who represented Democrats, won the seat in Ward 3 (Franklin County). His nearest rival Republican Marshall Spalding received 990 votes. 

Born in Bhutan, Pyakurel was only 9 when his family was evicted out of the country. After spending years in refugee camp, his family moved to US in 2009. His family was resettled to Colorado due on doctor’s advice on his father’s medical condition, Pyakurel family moved to Ohio.

Ohio has the largest Bhutanese population outside Bhutan and is more concentrated to the Columbus area. Other candidate Jay Subedi running for a seat in the Syracuse City Council in New York.  Subedi secured 1370 votes while winning candidate Joseph Carni secured 2067 votes. Subedi run as Democrats candidate from council’s first district.