Amar Mukunda

Amar Mukunda has served in the U.S. Army Reserve. Mukunda earned a high school diploma from Walt Whitman High School. He went on to earn a bachelor's degree from Amherst College in 2015 and a graduate degree from Stanford University in 2025. Mukunda's career experience includes working as an engineer.[1]

Who are you? Tell us about yourself.

Amar is the son of immigrants and was born and raised here in Montgomery County. Growing up, his family struggled. They moved seven times within the county before he graduated high school, so he understands that every penny matters for working families.

Amar went on to receive his Master’s in Energy and Infrastructure Engineering from Stanford, serve in the U.S. Army Reserve as a Combat Engineer, and help run Maryland’s largest gun violence prevention program.

He has been a leader in mobilizing District 39 to fight back against the Trump Administration and keep ICE out of Maryland. His campaign is focused on reclaiming our democracy, lowering the cost of living, creating world-class, gun-free schools, and meeting the challenges of the 21st century: AI, climate, and infrastructure.

Please list below 3 key messages of your campaign. What are the main points you want voters to remember about your goals for your time in office?

No one has been fighting harder to stop Trump and keep ICE out of Maryland. In 2025, several key measures to keep ICE out of our state were rejected by the state senate despite advocacy from many immigrant groups. It took the state senate over one year from Trump’s inauguration to act. In 2026, the state senate failed to respond to Trump’s gerrymandering in Texas despite his unprecedented drawing of unfair maps.

It’s time for Democrats in the state senate who will do everything possible to fight back and reclaim our democracy. As state senator, Amar will close the loopholes in our state law so that Trump’s ICE can never get our data without a warrant and can never again get building permits for detention facilities in Maryland.Prices are soaring for everything. At the state level, we regulate utilities, health insurance, and local housing markets. But too often, the voices of industry donors and lobbyists are elevated over the needs of everyday people. Last year, utility companies spent $49,000 taking state legislators out to dinner. As Marylanders, we didn’t get the dinner, but we got the bill. Other states ban state-regulated companies from donating to politicians. Maryland must do the same.

As state senator, Amar will end the multi-year rate hikes that have driven up utility costs, fight for a statewide transformation of our healthcare system, and stop private equity from buying up homes and HOA management companies. Let’s make our county affordable.For four years, Amar helped run Maryland’s largest gun violence prevention program. He worked directly with young men from Montgomery Village and Germantown to Baltimore and Hagerstown who were carrying guns, stealing cars, and involved with drugs to try to get them back on track.

Too many young people in our community go down the wrong path because they have no outlet and no opportunity. That makes our neighborhoods unsafe for everyone. As state senator, Amar will fight to bring rec centers to Montgomery Village and Clarksburg so our youth have safe spaces after school, create strong vocational pathways, and modernize our teaching for an AI age so that all our young people graduate with real opportunity.

What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?

As a computer science graduate and Stanford-trained energy and infrastructure engineer, Amar understands that our economy is changing fast. AI is disrupting the workforce, climate change is making our infrastructure vulnerable, and Maryland is standing still while the world accelerates.

Amar would be the only Democrat in office with a tech background at this moment of immense change. He will use that experience to protect workers from automation, create clean energy opportunity zones that generate jobs, and ensure our schools prepare students by updating curriculum and mitigating the mental health effects of social media.

Maryland can’t afford to fall behind. Amar will bring the expertise and urgency needed to move our state forward.

What organizations or individuals have endorsed your campaign?

Progressive Maryland;Run for Something;University of Maryland College Democrats;Real Action, Inc.;Asian American Impact