In the murky, corrupt and disillusioning world of Illinois politics, the comptroller’s office is, surprisingly, a rare bright spot in the dark sea of state government. Though there is a now notorious former comptroller of the state, the current one, Dan Hynes, is almost universally regarded as a competent and good public servant, and now an Indian with an impressive record is running for the position in the 2010 election (as long as Hynes does not run for reelection). Raja Krishnamoorthi is a young politician with a sizable resume:

As Deputy Treasurer, Raja was responsible for overseeing programs in the Illinois Treasurer’s Office involving the custody and administration of billions of dollars in state funds. Raja managed those programs without a hint of scandal or favoritism. Prior to his appointment as Deputy Treasurer, Raja served on the board of the Illinois Housing Development Authority (IHDA), becoming chair of its Audit Committee. During his service, IHDA helped provide thousands of low- and moderate-income families across Illinois with affordable housing. Later, Raja was appointed as a Special Assistant Attorney General to help start the public corruption unit in the Illinois Attorney General’s Office.

Not only that, but Raja, 36 years old, grew up in local Peoria, was valedictorian at Richwoods High School, went to Princeton and Harvard Law School, and has a wife and two young sons. He is representative of the “post-doctor” Indian generation, having spent a few years in management consulting and a few years in private law practice. He’s a “longtime friend” of President Obama’s who has worked on all of his campaigns, which should help him out quite a bit here in Illinois. As people are still not sure of Hynes’ intentions and it is still a while before the 2010 election, there has not been a great deal of press coverage yet, but the Chicago Sun-Times had this nice profile of Raja a few months ago: Continue reading →