Former US Congressman and now first Korean American US Senator Andy Kim (D-NJ) photo source Andy Kim for Senate
The 2024 election was an unprecedented cycle that saw the first Asian American and Black presidential nominee and an exponential growth in the number of Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander (AANHPI) congressional candidates running in districts across the country. While we still await data on AANHPI voter turnout, it’s clear that ASPIRE’s investments and work throughout the cycle had a positive impact on our community as we grew the AANHPI Democratic caucus to its largest size in history. ASPIRE also had its most successful cycle to date, raising over $1.8M.
Asian American Representation in Congress
There are now 20 Democratic AANHPI Members of Congress, the most in history. In the 119th Congress, these members include:
Rep. Ted Lieu (CA-36), who was re-elected Vice Chair of the House Democratic Caucus, the highest-ranking AANHPI member in Congressional leadership history
Rep. Grace Meng (NY-06), the incoming Chair of the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus
Andy Kim (NJ), the first Asian American to represent New Jersey in the Senate and the first Korean American elected to the Senate
Yassamin Ansari (AZ-03), the first Iranian American Democrat elected to Congress and the first Iranian American woman to represent Arizona
Derek Tran (CA-45), the first Vietnamese American to represent California in Congress
Dave Min (CA-47), the first Democratic Korean American man to represent California in Congress
Suhas Subramanyam (VA-10), the first Indian American to represent Virginia in Congress
Asian American candidates also saw increased representation on the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee’s Red to Blue list. Both Derek Tran and Dave Min ran successful campaigns, and while Amish Shah (AZ-01) and Lanon Baccam (IA-03) ultimately fell short, they have proven that Asian Americans can run competitive campaigns in non-traditional AANHPI districts.
Investments in On-the-Ground AANHPI Outreach
ASPIRE recognized that the number of eligible AANHPI voters in the battleground states of Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, and Pennsylvania was greater than President Biden’s margin of victory in 2020. ASPIRE and its partner organization Communities United Action Fund directed a six-figure investment to local AANHPI stakeholders and organizations engaged in culturally competent voter contact events, AANHPI-targeted canvassing, AANHPI-targeted mail, and AANHPI-targeted digital mobilization. These investments led to over 200,000 AANHPI voter contacts. In addition, ASPIRE’s partner organization Communities United Action Fund ran a seven-figure digital program that reached over 420,000 new and infrequent AANHPI voters in Nevada, over 400,00 AANHPI voters in Michigan, and over 800,000 AANHPI voters in Pennsylvania through digital issue ads focused on the economy and anti-Asian hate.
NY-03 Special Election and CAPAC Allies
ASPIRE also focused on supporting its allies representing districts with significant AANHPI communities. Earlier this year, ASPIRE invested heavily in AANHPI outreach and engagement during the NY-03 special election. Those investments included: hiring an AANHPI outreach coordinator on the ground in NY-03 to help lead AANHPI outreach for the Suozzi campaign; co-hosting multiple in-language AANHPI media roundtables; hosting a national briefing for AANHPI stakeholders on the importance of the Asian American vote in NY-03; leveraging the ASPIRE relational organizing network for AANHPI phone banking and an AANHPI day of action; placing in-language digital banner ads on World Journal; and ASPIRE members campaigning alongside Tom Suozzi in the district, including ASPIRE PAC Chair Grace Meng, Caucus Vice Chair Ted Lieu, ASPIRE Vice Chair Jill Tokuda, and Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi.
ASPIRE also worked to support Frontliners who are members of CAPAC, including Rep. Dina Titus (NV-01), Rep. Susie Lee (NV-03), Rep. Steven Horsford (NV-04) Rep. Tom Suozzi (NY-03), Rep. Emilia Sykes (OH-13), and Rep. Kim Schrier (WA-08), all of whom won re-election.
Asian American Polling and Research
Still, too often, AANHPI voters are excluded or not sufficiently oversampled in Democratic polling and focus groups. ASPIRE ensured campaigns and partner organizations prioritized Asian American voter research in the 2024 cycle and invested over $120,000 in AANHPI focus groups, polling, and AANHPI oversamples.
Road Ahead for ASPIRE and AANHPI Voter Engagement
It should not be discounted that there were significant wins for the AANHPI community in the 2024 election. Not only did the number of AANHPI Members of Congress reach a historic high, but once again AANHPI voters proved they are one of the best returns on investment when it comes to voter contact and engagement.
Asian Americans & Pacific Islanders Rising & Empowering Political Action Committee (ASPIRE PAC) is the political arm of the Democratic Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander (AANHPI) Members of Congress.