SAN FRANCISCO, Nov 12: Saqib Ali, a Pakistani-American, has been elected to the Maryland State legislature, in last week’s elections.

He is the second Pakistani-American to be elected to a state legislature. Saghir Tahir, popularly known as Saggy, has been re-elected for the third time to the New Hampshire State House. Mr Tahir belongs to the Republican Party. Saqib Ali, a Democrat, had defeated the incumbent member Joan F. Stern in the District 39 primary race in last September that assured his success in the Nov 7 election.

During the election campaign, he was endorsed by the Washington Post. The influential paper wrote: “Political newcomer Saqib Ali has shown good command of issues and would bring new vigour to this district’s delegation.”

Born in Chicago, to Pakistani parents, Ali has lived in Montgomery County since 1991. He holds both Bachelors and Masters degrees in Computer Science from the University of Maryland. He is currently working with a Virginia firm on classified national security projects.