Who I Am and Why We Matter?

My legal name is Sidhant Sharma but I go by Sunny. Ever since moving from Boston, Massachusetts when I was three years old in 1999 I have been a lifelong member of the Dunwoody, Georgia Community for the past 26 years. I will be 30 years old by the time the 2026 election for the District 4 U.S. House of Representatives seat in Georgia will be contested against the incumbent Democrat Hank Johnson. I am an Indian American who was the only combined sum cum laude (3.9 GPA and higher) and honors recipient from the 2021 class of Oglethorpe University with a B.A. in History. From recent town halls, concerned citizens of District 4 have not only expressed to Hank Johnson that they want a new a generation of leadership guided and ushered in by those more experienced, but also that they demand not just a legislator but a true leader and servant to the people. I concur with this sentiment.

My platform below is not just a call to reform our local community of over a quarter of a million residents of a primarily 96% urban and very diverse demographic area, it is part of a larger movement to reclaim the democratic tradition and public policy agenda for the 99% of working class people that make up the backbone of America. My political agenda has been influenced by my study of history both in college and graduate school at Georgia State University. Since 2020 I have canvassed and been a member of the Movement for a People’s Party, a third party movement to provide a progressive agenda to challenge the two party system which has fundamentally failed so many people. Unfortunately, due to internal conflicts and problems, this movement has not only been curtailed, but has made me realize that perhaps already existing infrastructure in the Democratic Party can usher in a whole new generation of leaders especially those positioned on the center left such as the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) including such figures as Alexandria Ocasio Cortez and Zohran Mamdani.

As a consequence, since May of 2025 I have joined the Atlanta DSA Chapter as they possess much of the infrastructure and organization that the much newer Movement for a People’s Party lacked. As the largest DSA chapter in the Southeast and the 11th largest in the nation, Atlanta DSA is well positioned to set a political precedent like Zohran Mamdani did in New York to create an affordable city out of inequality and hope out of despair. We can only create a society for the working class which constitues 99% of Americans through a broad coalition that offers space for a new generation of leaders. I humbly beesech the members of my District (District 4) to offer me their vote and voice to make this a reality.