Ukrainian-born Democrat who testified against Trump is elected to US Congress

Eugene Vindman, a Ukrainian-born Democratic Party representative, has been elected to the House of Representatives in Virginia. He and his twin brother, Alexander Vindman, testified in the impeachment case against Donald Trump.

Source: European Pravda with reference to The New York Times

Details: The New York Times noted that Eugene Vindman’s victory keeps the district in Democratic hands, bolstering the party's hopes of gaining a majority in the House of Representatives.

Vindman, 49, will replace Democrat Abigail Spanberger, who decided to run for governor, in the House of Representatives.

AP noted that Vindman focused his campaign on abortion rights and the threat to democracy posed by the MAGA movement. He described his victory as "a testament to the power of the American experience" given that he, a native of Kyiv, was able to obtain high political office in the United States.

"It’s a testament to the power of the American experience, that an immigrant who escaped a Soviet regime and came to this great nation with less than $800 in our pockets, would now stand here as a Congressman-elect of the United States House of Representatives," he was quoted as saying.

Kyiv-born Vindman, 49, is a retired US Army lieutenant colonel, a lawyer, and the twin brother of Alexander Vindman. In 2018, Eugene Vindman became a deputy legal adviser to the US National Security Council, but he was fired by Trump in 2020.

AP noted that both brothers testified against Trump in the case of his call to President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, which triggered the first impeachment against Trump. 

Background:

• European Pravda reported that on 19 November 2019, during an open hearing in the House of Representatives as part of the impeachment trial, Alexander Vindman stated that he had been offered the post of Minister of Defence of Ukraine.
• During the hearing, Vindman also stated that he considered US President Donald Trump's telephone conversation with Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelenskyy "inappropriate". He had previously given evidence in camera, when he said that the conversation made it clear to him that Ukraine would not receive military aid unless it did what Trump wanted.
• After that, both brothers were fired in what the Pentagon said was retaliation against Eugene Vindman on the part of Trump’s officials.

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