What is Tulsi Gabbard’s ethnicity?

Tulsi Gabbard‘s unique heritage as the first Hindu member of the U.S. Congress would be more than enough to excite comment on its own — serving as a testament to the diversity the country boasts at the moment — but it is ultimately her political shift from a Democrat of more than 10 years to a Republican endorsing President-elect Donald Trump and then being chosen as the next director of national intelligence that’s currently being talked about ad nauseam. But now that Gabbard is to be the next DNI, what is there to know about her origins and ethnicity?

Gabbard’s history of military service in Iraq makes her an interesting choice for DNI. Her somewhat sympathetic comments towards Russia over the matter of the ongoing Ukraine war have raised eyebrows all over the political spectrum, not least of all among Democrats. However, when you consider that she decided to sever all those long-running ties with the Democrats and throw in her lot with Donald Trump in 2024, it makes sense why she would be in favor of an end to the war, no matter the specifics of a potential deal between Kremlin and Kyiv. Gabbard is also against military interventionism, which might make for an indecisive tenure given all the conflict raging on in the Middle East.

In 2012, Gabbard won her seat in the House of Representatives against Kawika Crowley, and was reelected for a second, third, and fourth term. A little while after her election, and as the first Hindu representative in Congress, Gabbard was elected to vice chair the Democratic National Committee, a position she held for three years before resigning in 2016 to endorse Bernie Sanders in the presidential race. Gabbard further endorsed Joe Biden in the 2020 run, though as of now, the lieutenant colonel finds herself in the MAGA camp, and is expected to take up commission as the next director of intelligence under Donald Trump.

Here is all you need to know about the politician’s roots.

Tulsi Gabbard’s ethnicity, confirmed

Gabbard was born into a neo-Hindu family in American Samoa on April 12, 1981. Her father, Mike Gabbard, is of both Samoan and European ancestry, while her mother, Carol Porter Gabbard, is of German descent and was born in Indiana, making Gabbard of Polynesian and Caucasian descent. The family moved back to Hawaii when Tulsi was two years old, where she grew up practicing Hinduism. Even her name Tulsi is named after a sacred plant (Tulasi) in Hinduism. Gabbard grew up reading the Bhagavad Gita, the Hindu scripture central to the Vedanta and the Vaishnava traditions.

Gabbard is not afraid of embracing her diverse heritage. Indeed, she has openly discussed her Hindu roots in the past and challenged politicians who use faith as a tool to foment bigotry. 

“During my 2012 and 2014 elections, my Republican opponent stated publicly that a Hindu should not be allowed to serve in the U.S. Congress and that Hinduism is incompatible with the U.S. Constitution,” she wrote in a 2019 op-ed. “In the 2016 race for Congress, my Republican opponent said repeatedly that a vote for me was a vote for the devil because of my religion.”

Gabbard has also discussed her roots at length in an appearance on the Lex Fridman podcast, which you can check out above.