Andrew Yang

Andrew Yang Yang speaks with attendees at the 2019 Iowa Democratic Wing Ding at Surf Ballroom in Clear Lake, Iowa.
Professional / Career Details
Name	Andrew Yang
Profession	Attorney Author Entrepreneur Political commentator Politician
Leader of	Forward Party (founder, 2021)
Assumed office	2021-10-05
Known for	Candidate, 2020 Democratic Party presidential primaries Candidate, 2021 New York City Democratic mayoral primary Founder, Forward Party
Influenced by	Democratic Party
Website	ForwardParty.com
Personal Details
Name	Andrew Yang
Born	1975-01-13
Birthplace	Schenectady, New York, U.S.A.
Spouse	Evelyn Yang (née Lu; m. 2011)
Marital status	Married
Children	2 sons (older son, Christopher Yang, is autistic)
Nationality	American
Residences	Hell's Kitchen, Manhattan, New York City, New York New Paltz, New York New York
Education	Brown University (B.A.) Columbia University (J.D.)
Political party	Independent (2021-present)
Spirituality	Reformed Church in America (mainline Reformed Protestant denomination; New Paltz, New York)
Political affiliations	Democratic Party (1995-2021) Forward Party (2021-present)
Political ideology	Economic reform Electoral reform Human-Centered Capitalism

Background

Andrew Yang (born January 13, 1975) is an American entrepreneur, attorney, and politician. Yang is best known for being a candidate in the 2020 Democratic Party presidential primaries and the 2021 New York City Democratic mayoral primary.

The son of immigrants from , Andrew Yang was born and raised in New York State. He attended Brown University and Columbia Law School. Yang unexpectedly became a prominent candidate in the 2020 Democratic Party presidential primaries. Yang's signature policy was a universal basic income of $1,000 a month as a response to job displacement by automation. Yang has been credited with popularizing the idea of universal basic income through his candidacy and activism.

News outlets described Yang as the most surprising candidate ["dark horse"] of the 2020 election cycle, going from a relative unknown to a major competitor in the race. Yang qualified for and participated in seven of the first eight Democratic debates. Andrew Yang's supporters, informally known as the "Yang Gang," included several high-profile celebrities. Yang suspended his campaign on February 11, 2020, shortly after the New Hampshire primary. After his campaign ended, Yang joined CNN as a political commentator, announced the creation of the political nonprofit organization Humanity Forward, and ran in the 2021 New York City Democratic mayoral primary. Yang conceded the race shortly after the initial ranked choice votes were released, which placed him fourth.

On October 4, 2021, Andrew Yang announced that he was leaving the Democratic Party to become an Independent, faulting what he characterized as a system stuck in increasing polarization and saying that he is "more comfortable trying to fix the system than being a part of it." This coincided with his founding of the Forward Party.

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Founding of the Forward Party

In Andrew Yang's 2021 book Forward: Notes on the Future of Our Democracy, he announced his intention to found a new third party, the Forward Party. He is founding the party on the premise that "Trust is fading ... Our political system is a fixed duopoly that will want to move slowly, if at all." The party's key principles include ranked voting,   open primaries,   Human-Centered Capitalism, and universal basic income.

Andrew Yang contends that the Forward Party will not be a spoiler [vote splitting] because it supports implementing open primaries and ranked choice voting, which would eliminate spoiler candidates. The party will also endorse Democrats and Republicans who support its platform and will also exist as a social movement open to Democrats, Republicans and Independents.

On October 4, 2021, Andrew Yang announced on his blog that he had changed his voter registration from Democrat to Independent, calling it "a strangely emotional experience." He also wrote that he is "confident that no longer being a Democrat is the right thing."

Personal Life

Andrew Yang has been married to Evelyn Yang (née Lu) since 2011, and they have two sons. He has spoken about his older son Christopher Yang, who is autistic, saying, "I'm very proud of my son and anyone who has someone on the spectrum in their family feels the exact same way."

The Yang family lives in a rental apartment in Hell's Kitchen, Manhattan, and also owns a home in New Paltz, New York, that they purchased in 2015. This became the family's primary residence during the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic, and a focus of controversy during Yang's mayoral campaign. In 2019, Yang reported on his tax return that he rented out this home for 58 days to friends or on Airbnb.

Andrew Yang and his family attend the Reformed Church of New Paltz  [website], which is near his home, and has identified Rev. Dr. Mark Eugene Mast  [local copy] as their pastor. He considers himself spiritual. Speaking about his faith at an interfaith town hall at Wartburg College, Yang said he "wouldn't be the first to say that his own journey is still in progress."

In 2020, Andrew Yang received the 2021 Vilcek Prize for Excellence in Public Service, awarded by the Vilcek Foundation.

On February 2, 2021, Andrew Yang tested positive for COVID-19 and reported having mild symptoms. He fully recovered.

On February 26, 2021, Andrew Yang stopped a physical attack on a journalist on the Staten Island Ferry by placing himself between the attacker and the journalist. The attacker recognized Yang and stopped the assault.

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