Contact:
Kyung Jin Lee, [email protected]
Bilen Mesfin Packwood, [email protected]
New Poll: Asian American Voting Power in 2022 Midterm Elections
Ten-year trend shows Asian American voters are favor progressive policies and candidates
LOS ANGELES: As part of an unprecedented and successful midterm election for Democrats, Asian American voters once again, overwhelmingly favored progressive candidates and policies in the 2022 midterm elections and rejected the supposed red wave, according to a nonpartisan election eve poll conducted by the AAPI Civic Engagement Fund to gain information into Asian American voting turnout. The voting power of Asian Americans was particularly pronounced in congressional districts where Asian Americans comprise more than 10 percent of the total voting population.
In razor-thin races throughout the country, Asian American voters were instrumental in potential wins, based on findings from the election eve poll. For example:
- CA-47: With 55% of the vote counted, incumbent Katie Porter leads challenger Scott Baugh 50.3% to 49.7%, a difference of just 938 votes. According to the Fund’s election eve poll, Asian American voters supported Porter 53% to 36%. There are an estimated 111,489 citizen, voting age Asian Americans in CA-47, or 23% of the citizen adult population.
- NV-03: With 78% of the vote counted, incumbent Susie Lee leads challenger April Becker 50.4% to 49.6%, a difference of just 1,702 votes. According to the Fund’s election eve poll, Asian American voters supported Lee 47% to 43%. There are an estimated 82,290 citizen, voting-age Asian Americans in NV-03, or 14% of the citizen adult population.
Nationally, Asian American voters, compared to other races, supported Democratic v. Republican candidates as follows: (Net support, followed by Democratic support and Republican support):
- Black Voters: 46% net support (70% – 24%)
- Asian American Voters: 14% net support (51% – 37%)
- Latinx Voters: 11% net support (53% to 42%)
- White Voters: -8% (43% – 51%)
“Over the course of the past decade, the Asian American voting bloc has transformed into a core constituency for the progressive values. Asian Americans now hold progressive views on a variety of issues and are far more similar to Latinx and Black voters than they are to whites. This is a strong and continued repudiation of efforts that fomented racial divisions and stoked anti-Asian violence, particularly during the pandemic.”
Since 2012, at least two-thirds of Asian Americans have supported Democratic candidates and progressive policies.
“Despite attempts to pit AAPIs against Black and Latinx people, communities of color are flexing their power together with a shared vision for a country that welcomes immigrants, sees diversity as a strength, and supports bread and butter issues like a stronger education system and a functioning democracy.”
METHODOLOGY
Polling was conducted online from October 28 – November 8, 2022. Using its Bias Correct Engine to attain a representative sample, Change Research polled 3,201 likely 2022 voters nationwide, 650 likely voters in California’s 47th Congressional District, and 611 likely voters in Nevada’s 3rd Congressional District. The samples in each Congressional District, as well as the nationwide sample, included oversamples of Asian American & Pacific Islander voters. Post-stratification was performed in each geography on age, gender, race/ethnicity, and 2020 presidential vote, as well as region (in the nationwide sample) and education (in the NV-03 sample). The surveys were conducted in English, Mandarin, Korean, Vietnamese and Tagalog. The modeled margin of error, which incorporates the design effect, was 2.1% in the nationwide sample, 4.5% in CA-47, and 4.7% in NV-03.
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ABOUT AAPI CIVIC ENGAGEMENT FUND
The Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) Civic Engagement Fund is a national initiative established in 2013 to foster a culture of civic participation within AAPI communities by supporting the growth of AAPI groups as leaders in organizational movement and power building to achieve specific policy, systems, and transformational change. We were formed with the belief that AAPIs must be an integral part of strengthening America’s democracy, in advocating for improving the quality of life for all, and in creating vibrant multiracial communities. For more info: https://aapifund.org/