A Chinese-American Jew and a Jewish Latina woman both lost their congressional bids.
Democrat Hank Eng, a recent convert to Judaism, was defeated by Colorado Secretary of State Mike Coffman, a Republican, in the race for retiring GOP lawmaker Tom Tancredo’s seat. No Democrat has won the seat since it was created in 1980. Eng, a New York native born to Chinese immigrants, married a Jewish woman and converted as his daughter approached bat mitzvah.
In South Florida, Colombian-born Democrat Annette Taddeo lost to 19-year GOP incumbent Ileana Ros-Lehtinen. The Cuban-born Republican has long been a strong advocate for Israel and currently is ranking minority member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee.
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