Meet Vedant Patel: First Indian-American to hold daily US State Dept press briefing

Vedant Patel, the Principal Deputy Spokesperson for the US Department of State, has become the first Indian-American to hold the daily State Department press briefing.

33-year-old Patel on Tuesday appeared at the briefing room in the Foggy Bottom headquarters of the State Department as State Department Spokesperson Ned Price was on vacation

He made an impressive debut, covering topics on foreign policy issues ranging from Russia's invasion of Ukraine, Iran negotiations and the election of Liz Truss as UK PM, PTI reported.


Patel, who was born in Gujarat, is a graduate of the University of California and received an MBA from the University of Florida. The US Department of State website says:

• He has previously served as an Assistant Press Secretary and Spokesperson for President Joe Biden in the White House.
• Prior to that, he served as a spokesperson on the Presidential Inaugural Committee and the Biden-Harris Transition.
• He also held communications positions on the Biden Campaign both in the primary and general elections.
• Previously, Patel worked as Communications Director to Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal and Communications Director to Congressman Mike Honda.

After his debut, a lot of congratulations poured in, with senior White House officials praising his “utmost professionalism”.

Matt Hill, senior Associate Communications Director at the White House, tweeted: “Representing the United States on the world stage is a huge responsibility, and Vedant did it with the utmost professionalism and clear communication.”

Pili Tobar, former White House deputy communications director said: “It's so great to see Vedant Patel at the podium".