Anna Kaplan

Anna Kaplan (née Anna Monahemi) is an American politician from Great Neck, New York.

Kaplan, an Iranian-American, was born in Tabriz, Iran.[1] She fled Iran as a child refugee as a result of the Iranian Revolution.[2][3][4]

Kaplan is the first Iranian-American elected to municipal office in New York State.[5][6][7]

Childhood and education

Kaplan was born in Tabriz, and reared in Tehran, Iran where her father was a carpet dealer.[8][9] The family shared a 3-family house with the family of her uncle.[8] Kaplan fled Iran at age 13 as an unaccompanied child refugee,[9] arriving first in Crown Heights, Brooklyn, then going to live with a foster family in Chicago until her parents were able to escape from Iran.[1] After her family reunited in the United States, they moved to Queens, New York, and then to Great Neck, New York.[10]

Kaplan attended the Stern College at Yeshiva University and received her J.D. from the Benjamin Cardozo School of Law in New York.[7][10]

Political career

Kaplan has been a member of the North Hempstead Town Board since 2011.[5] She previously served as a trustee of the Great Neck Public Library and was a member of the North Hempstead Board of Zoning Appeals.[2]

On 11 January 2016 she announced that she would run for the seat in the United States Representative for New York's 3rd congressional district being vacated by retiring congressman Steve Israel.[11] If elected, she will be the first Iranian American to serve in Congress.

Personal life

Kaplan and her husband live in Great Neck, where they've raised two daughters.[11]

References

  1. 1 2 "From political refugee to town councilwoman". Island Now. 18 January 2012. Retrieved 15 January 2016.
  2. 1 2 San Antonio, Bill (24 September 2015). "North Hempstead councilwoman Anna Kaplan touts record in re-election campaign". The Island Now. Retrieved 15 January 2016.
  3. ↑ Zendrian, Alexandra (9 November 2011). "Kaplan Wins North Hempstead Town Council Race – Port Washington, NY Patch". Portwashington.patch.com. Archived from the original on 2012-04-24. Retrieved 14 January 2016.
  4. ↑ "Kaplan recounts journey from Iran". The Island Now. 21 November 2013. Retrieved 15 January 2016.
  5. 1 2 Brand, Rick (11 January 2016). "Anna Kaplan, a North Hempstead Democrat, announces candidacy for Congress". Newsday. Retrieved 15 January 2016.
  6. ↑ "Councilwoman Anna Kaplan Announces Bid for Re-election". paaia.org. Public Affairs Alliance of Iranian Americans. Retrieved 15 January 2016.
  7. 1 2 "Anna Kaplan". iranianamericanpac.org. Iranian American Political Action Committee. Retrieved 15 January 2016.
  8. 1 2 "Anna Kaplan named Lifetime "Remarkable Woman"". mylifetime.com. Lifetime (TV network) . Retrieved 15 January 2016.
  9. 1 2 "Anna Kaplan profile". dev2.iawfoundation.org/. Iranian American Women Foundation. Retrieved 15 January 2016.
  10. 1 2 Hopper, Justin (29 October 2015). "Meet the Candidates for District Council 4". The Roslyn News. Retrieved 15 January 2016.
  11. 1 2 Jacoby, Sheri Jacoby. "Anna Kaplan To Run For Congress". Great Neck Record. Retrieved 15 January 2016.
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