Shri Thanedar

Avomeen

Thanedar launch Avomeen Analytical Services, an Ann Arbor-based chemical testing laboratory, with his son Neil in 2010.^[14] Avomeen was named to the INC 5000 list of fastest-growing U.S. companies in 2015 (#673) and 2016 (#1365).^[15] In 2016, Thanedar sold a majority stake in the business to private equity firm High Street Capital, netting him $20 million personally.^[16] He shared $1.5 million of the proceeds with his 50 employees.^[17]

Thanedar was named the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year for the Central Midwest Region (Missouri, Kansas, Iowa and Nebraska) in 1999, 2007, and 2016.^[18][19] He maintains 40% ownership of Avomeen.^[17]

2018 gubernatorial campaign

On April 5, 2017, Thanedar submitted paperwork to raise funds for a potential gubernatorial campaign in Michigan.^[24] On June 8, he officially announced his candidacy for governor of Michigan in the 2018 Democratic primary.^[25] He pledged not to accept any corporate political action committee donations.^[26] Thanedar contributed $10.6 million of his own money to his campaign.^[27] Early polling in 2017 showed him in last place at 2% to 3%.^{[citation needed]} After running a statewide Super Bowl ad in February 2018, he quickly became the best-known Democratic candidate for governor.^[28] Thanedar won statewide Democratic polls in March (21% to 18%) and April (30% to 26%) versus Gretchen Whitmer, the presumptive Democratic front-runner.^{[citation needed]}

As Thanedar's campaign gained public traction in early 2018, reporters at The Intercept and HuffPost began investigating Thanedar's history.^[29][11] Thanedar had not held elective office before running for governor in 2017, so he did not have an official record as a Democrat. Campaign finance records show that he made 18 donations to Democratic campaigns and one to a Republican campaign before running for office.^[23] The Republican donation, $2,300 to the Republican presidential campaign of John McCain, led to controversy that Thanedar might not be as progressive as he claimed.^[30] Political strategists who met with Thanedar before his 2018 campaign also claimed that he initially questioned whether he wanted to run as a Democrat or Republican in the gubernatorial race.^[31] Thanedar denied the claims, saying that these strategists were criticizing him because he did not hire their firms.^[31] He also faced allegations that laboratory animals were abandoned at one of his former research facilities after Bank of America placed that business into receivership in 2010, which he denied.^[12]

These controversies hurt Thanedar's campaign and he failed to poll over 30% again. In the primary, he won the City of Detroit, but finished third statewide; he received 200,645 votes (17.7%), placing him in third behind Whitmer's 588,436 votes (52.0%) and Abdul El-Sayed's 342,179 votes (30.2%).^[32][33][34] Thanedar's support was heavily concentrated in cities like Detroit, Flint, Inkster, and Pontiac with high African American populations.^[35][36][37]

Thanedar self-funded his campaign with nearly $10.3 million, which was more than the total amount raised by every other Democratic or Republican in the primary elections, and nearly a third of the amount raised by all candidates combined.^[38]

2020 Michigan House of Representatives campaign

In August 2019, Thanedar submitted paperwork to run for state representative in Michigan's 3rd district, a portion of the upper east side of Detroit. On August 4, 2020, he won the Democratic primary for the seat.^[39] On November 3, 2020, Thanedar was elected to the state house.^[40] He assumed office on January 1, 2021.^[41]

Political positions

Articles of impeachment

On April 29, 2025, Thanedar filed multiple articles of impeachment against President Donald Trump. Charges include usurpation of Congress's appropriation powers, obstruction of justice, abuse of power, bribery, and corruption.^[52] These articles of impeachment did not receive party-wide support, faced intra party backlash, and notably lacked approval from party leadership. On May 14, 2025, Thanedar cancelled a vote on his bill after pressure from other Democrats.^[53]

The articles of impeachment were strongly criticized by Democrats as a "rogue" attempt to blindside and mislead the party, and was seen as a "selfish" way to strengthen his position in the competitive primary he would be facing in 2026 against Michigan State Rep. Donavan McKinney who had announced his campaign on the same day. It was also opposed by Democrats who had previously led the first and second impeachment of Donald Trump in his first term.^{[54][55][56][57]} Some saw it as a publicity stunt.^[58]

On December 4, 2025 Congressman Thanedar introduced Articles of Impeachment against Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth for murder and conspiracy to murder, and for reckless and mishandling of classified information.^[59] Democratic House minority leader Hakeem Jeffries said it is almost impossible for these articles to see the House floor.^[60]

Elections

Committee assignments

• Committee on Homeland Security
  • Subcommittee on Border Security and Enforcement
  • Subcommittee on Oversight, Investigations, and Accountability
  • Subcommittee on Transportation and Maritime Security (Ranking Member)
• Committee on Small Business
  • Subcommittee on Contracting and Infrastructure
  • Subcommittee on Innovation, Entrepreneurship, and Workforce Development

Caucuses

Thanedar is a member of the following caucuses:

• Black Maternal Health Caucus^[68]
• Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus^[69]
• Climate Solutions Caucus^[70]
• Congressional Progressive Caucus^[71]
• Congressional Equality Caucus^[72]
• New Democrat Coalition^[73]

Early in his House tenure, Thanedar attempted to join the Congressional Black Caucus.^[61]

In September 2023, Thanedar attempted to launch the Dharma Caucus, representing Hindu, Jain, Buddhist, and Sikh Americans.^[74] Thanedar stated the caucus "is a statement of commitment to stand against religious discrimination, to propel the wheels of inclusion, and to cultivate a nation where diversity is not only tolerated, but celebrated". South Asian advocacy groups, including Hindus for Human Rights, Sikh Coalition, Sikh American Legal Defense and Education Fund, Emgage, and Indian American Muslim Council, put out a joint statement voicing concern on the lack of "perspectives of the entire South Asian community across faith, caste and ethnic lines."^[75][76] The groups collectively argued that due to lack of broader inclusivity, the Dharma caucus could work against the ability to "provide meaningful oversight of the US-India relationship, ongoing work to protect the civil rights and safety of Sikhs and other marginalized groups, and efforts to ban caste discrimination at a federal level."^[76]

Lab animal abandonment

About 170 dogs and 55 monkeys were rescued in July 2010 from an abandoned pharmaceutical testing lab in New Jersey owned by Thanedar, after it went bankrupt in April 2010. Local animal rights activists learned that 118 beagles were still stuck inside the facility and the lab's workers were jumping the lab's fences to provide food and water for the dogs.^[11][77] Thanedar claimed that the bank was in charge of taking care of the animals.^[12] A volunteer at the shelter who received many of the beagles rescued from the facility said "We believe that they have never been outside, ever. I don't think they've actually had their paws on the grass. When I walked in here it looked like they were walking on eggshells. They were kind of afraid to walk on the grass."^[11]

A few days later, 55 long-tailed macaques were rescued by California based organization In Defense of Animals.^[11] Primarily Primates Sanctuary, who received 25 male Java macaque monkeys stated that they looked pale and thin when they arrived at the sanctuary, and the stress had led many of them to pull out some of their hair.^[12]

Herbal supplement with Viagra

Joel Crookston, a quality assurance manager at Thanedar's Ann Arbor-based Avomeen Analytical Services quit in 2014 after Thanedar refused to alert federal regulators about a customer suspected of illegally spiking a male "herbal supplement" with prescription Viagra. Crookston told a state assistant attorney general he went around Thanedar and personally reported his concerns to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). An analytical chemist told the Detroit News he recalled Crookston saying multiple times he was going into Thanedar's office to discuss the herbal supplement and seeing him do so.^[78]

An FDA report was later released confirming the presence of the undeclared ingredient and warning against using the supplement because it "may interact with nitrates found in some prescription drugs such as nitroglycerin and may lower blood pressure to dangerous levels."^[79] Later that year the FDA conducted its own chemical analysis and issued a warning to the supplement's parent company that it contained the undeclared ingredient and therefore must be treated as prescription medication.^[80]

Thanedar "denied any memory of the herbal supplement or customer in question,"^[78] but stated that it was his obligation to test the drugs and inform his clients of the rules, not to inform the federal government about client misconduct.^[11]

Business fraud lawsuit and settlement

After Thanedar sold Avomeen in 2016, a federal lawsuit alleged that he made "fraudulent and misleading" claims to inflate the value of the company in a deal that netted him roughly $20 million. The complaint alleged that Thanedar personally directed employees to smooth over volatile revenue growth in the months leading up to the sale, and instructed bookkeeping staff to back date invoices so revenue could be recognized in prior months to suggest a more stable income stream.^[81] Thanedar denied the accusations,^[82] but later settled for an undisclosed amount four days before the trial was to start.^[83][84]

Political reputation

In 2023 HuffPost reported that in Thanedar's first year in Congress, he "has gained a reputation for vanity in an institution powered by the stuff, burning through staff at a rapid clip, alienating his fellow members and spending taxpayer funds on what some people with knowledge of his office view as naked self-promotion."^[85] Thanedar's ability to self-fund his own campaigns ($9.1 million in 2022^[86] and $5.3 million in 2024 ^[87]) has helped insulate him from the criticism he has received from political peers in Michigan, including from Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson,^[b] U.S. Rep. Rashida Tlaib,^[c][88] former U.S. Rep. Brenda Lawrence,^[d][85] State Senator Darrin Camilleri,^[e][89] former State Senator Adam Hollier,^[f][85] and Wayne County Executive Warren Evans.^[g][85]

Malleable political beliefs

Congressional colleagues and former staff were quoted by HuffPost criticizing Thanedar for his "malleable political beliefs" that have shifted when politically expedient, such as his conversations with consultants before his run for Governor about whether he should campaign as a Democrat or a Republican.^[12][38][85] Analysis of his past campaign contributions also showed donations to both parties, including the 2008 Presidential campaign of Senator John McCain.^[11]

Spending public funds for self-promotion

In the months leading up to the 2024 primary election, Detroit News reported that Thanedar had spent public taxpayer funds on $789,000 in TV ads and $40,000 in radio ads, plus an undetermined amount on five billboards and half a dozen mailers. In 2023, Thanedar spent 29% of his office's budget on advertisements, compared to the congressional average of 5%.^[90]

Toxic work environment

Former staffers said Thanedar's congressional office is a toxic work environment, leading to understaffing and high staff turnover. In his first year in Congress, Thanedar went through three different chiefs of staff, and the office only had six or seven permanent staff instead of the more typical 15-18 staffers for a House lawmaker. Thanedar spent 38% of his House budget in that first year on staff pay, while the average House member spent 78%.^[90][91] U.S. Rep. Rashida Tlaib, who represents the neighboring district, has publicly criticized Thanedar multiple times because his constituents contact her office when they cannot get support from Thanedar, saying "he isn't putting in the work of a public servant and is leaving his working-class communities across his district with no real advocate."^[90][88] Thanedar relies on interns to take on the work of more experienced and higher paid staffers. A former staffer also described being fired in the presence of an intern, an experience they found demoralizing and also emblematic of what it was like working for him.^[85]

Publicity stunts

Colleagues have called some of his bills self-serving publicity stunts, such as his Articles of Impeachment against President Trump that he introduced the same day that a 2026 primary challenger announced his campaign. Colleagues were quoted as saying "This is the dumbest fucking thing. Utterly selfish behavior," and "a waste of fucking time" since it was extremely unlikely to go anywhere in the Republican controlled House.^[92] Democratic House minority leader Hakeem Jeffries said a similar impeachment effort of Pete Hegseth was almost impossible for it to see the House floor.^[60] "This is not a publicity contest. This is a thing we call government," said former U.S. Rep. Brenda Lawrence.^[85]