At the Democratic Party gathering in Austin last week, Democratic National Committee Chairman Tim Kaine, who is still Governor of Virginia, nominated three Indian Americans as at-large members. They are Ohio state representative Jay Goyal, Democratic Party activist Sunita Leeds of Washington, DC, and Kamil Hasan, general partner of Hitek Venture Partners in Mountainview, CA. They will each serve for four years.

The DNC has 75 at-large members. The other members of the DNC are composed of elected officials, state party chairs and Democratic Party heavyweights. The DNC not only sets the platform for the party, but controls political campaign distributions.

“I am deeply honored to be re-appointed an at-large member of (the) DNC for the second time by Governor Tim Kaine,” Hasan told India-West, adding that he was pleased Kaine appointed two other Indian Americans at-large members.

“This clearly demonstrates that the leaders of the Democratic Party understand and acknowledge the importance of the role that our community can continue to play in the political arena in this country,” said Hasan, initially named to the DNC in 2005 and a super-delegate to the 2008 Democratic Party convention.

“This is also an acknowledgement of the success of our hard work at DNC and the significant role we have played in the last election cycle.”

“My appointment as the first Indian American at-large member of DNC was historical, but the appointment of three at-large (Indian Americans) is unprecedented,” he added.

Hasan and his wife, Talat, have been active supporters of the India Community Center in Milpitas, Calif., The Indus Entrepreneurs and the American India Foundation. He was an assistant professor at the Indian Institute of Technology in Delhi and an associate professor at Stanford University before co-founding a software company in the nuclear sector.

In a statement, Goyal, who after being reelected in November 2008 was named Majority Whip in the Ohio state Legislature, said he was the only at-large member appointed to the DNC from his state.

The 28-year old legislator from Mansfield, Ohio, was recently reported to be the frontrunner on Ohio Governor Ted Stickland’s shortlist for appointment as lieutenant governor.

Current Lieutenant Governor Lee Fisher is resigning to run for the U.S. Senate. The new lieutenant governor would be Stickland’s running mate in 2010 and a decision is expected by the end of this month.

Leeds, who was born in India, immigrated to the U.S. when she was seven years old. She met her husband, Dan, at Cornell University. She then converted to Judaism and they were married in 1981. They have four children.

The Enfranchisement Foundation, which she chairs with her husband, focuses on women’s issues and breaking cycles of poverty and intolerance in the U.S. Leeds sits on the boards of the Maret School, NY EdPAC, the League of Education Voters of America and is a member of the Executive Committee of the National Jewish Democratic Council. She previously headed a software development team at Bell Labs.

These appointments show the continuing importance of South Asians to the Democratic Party. Goyal is also rumored to be up for office of Lt. Governor of Ohio.