Politics & Government

Meet One Of 2018's Most Unusual Senate Candidates

GMO-skeptic and scientist Shiva Ayyadurai holds the U.S. copyright for "EMAIL" and was once "married" to actress Fran Drescher.

By Eric Kiefer, Patch StaffVerified Patch Staff Badge
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When it comes to political candidates, they don't get more outside-the-box than a rock and roll scientist who holds the U.S. copyright for "EMAIL," once "married" actress Fran Drescher, rages against the danger of unregulated GMOs and bills himself as a true "All-American Indian."

But that's Shiva Ayyadurai for you.

Last month, the Boston-area tech celebrity and former New Jersey resident formally declared his intention to run as a candidate for the United States Senate in 2018 against Massachusetts incumbent Senator Elizabeth Warren.

It was a surprising move from Ayyadurai, a political neophyte who is probably most recognizable from his controversial claim that he "invented" email. [Read Ayyadurai's take on the controversy here]

Ayyadurai, who is registered as a Republican and running on a platform of "innovation, education, creativity and meritocracy," has garnered endorsements from conservative political "outsiders" such as Breitbart news pundit and former MLB pitcher Curt Schilling.

But why would a right-wing icon like Schilling and his contemporaries back a man who has raged against Monsanto's influence over genetically modified organism regulations and donated to former Democrat presidential candidate John Kerry's campaign fund?

WHO IS SHIVA AYYADURAI?

According to Ayyadurai's campaign website, he immigrated to America at the age of seven with his parents from India.

"As a kid, I learned from my parents, teachers, coaches, and friends that what mattered most was Truth… to uncover it, share it and fight for it," he states on his website. "That core value is the foundation of the American Dream."

Ayyadurai says that while attending Livingston High School - an institution that would later elect him a member of its Hall of Fame – and working at the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey in Newark, he invented the system that we now know as "email," ultimately receiving a U.S. copyright for his program, which he dubbed "EMAIL."

Now - after earning four advanced degrees from MIT, nabbing a Fulbright Scholarship, launching multiple startup companies including CytoSolve and Systems Health, and engaging in a highly publicized "spiritual ceremony" with former partner Fran Drescher that dissolved in 2016 - Ayyadurai is seeking to put his problem-solving experience to work for the Massachusetts legislature.

GMOs AND ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION

While Ayyadurai's campaign website doesn't list any specific policies he's supporting, it may hold some clues about issues that are near and dear to his heart, such as illegal immigration and the fight against unregulated GMOs in America.

Shiva, who stresses that he and his parents came to America "legally," has been a stanch opponent of illegal immigration, even going so far as to share data from the Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR), a "non-partisan organization of concerned individuals" that's been classified as an anti-immigrant hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center.

Ayyadurai's conservative stance on immigration is curious when contrasted with his vehement opposition of corporate influence over GMO regulation, a traditionally liberal cause.

Ayyadurai told Patch that as a scientist who holds his PhD in biological engineering from MIT, he's not necessarily pro- or anti-GMO, but is "disturbed by the fact that GMOs have no safety assessment standards," which his research foundation, the International Center for Integrative Systems, has attempted to raise awareness about.

In the end, Shiva says that his campaign will be based on a vision for Massachusetts that includes a revaluation of what sort of political leaders the 21st century needs: career lawmakers or technological innovators?

"We need people like myself – and others – who understand [some things] on a ground level," he asserts in the below campaign video. "What is innovation? What is entrepreneurism? What is truly the 'health' in health care? And that's what we're going to need moving forward."

Send feedback to eric.kiefer@patch.com

Photo: Shiva Ayyadurai, Twitter

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