Asian Americans for Democracy

Asian Americans for Democracy is a partner with CAPA21, the Asian American political action committee that has roots in the Coalition of Asian Pacific Americans founded in 1987 by Dale Minami and others as one of the country’s first Asian American PACS. AA4D’s organizing committee includes civil rights activists, artists and writers, and community leaders, including Kathy Ko Chin, Dianne Fukami, Carole Hayashino, Debra Nakatomi, Dale Minami, Dan Nguyen-Tan, Vincent Pan, Lia Shigemura, Eddie Wong, Helen Zia and Hoyt Zia.

We are joined by the CAPA21 leaders Ginger Lew, Dale Minami, Maeley Tom, and Tamlyn Tomita, as well as consultant Keith Kamisugi.

We are singularly focused on defeating Trump by funding “get out the vote” efforts of state-based, local APA 501c4 groups in battleground states where the APA vote may make the deciding difference.

Who We Fund

The road to defeating Trump runs through battleground states where AANHPI voters can be the margin of victory for Harris/Walz.

According to 270toWin VP Kamala Harris can count on 226 electoral votes whereas Trump has 235 electoral votes.  To defeat Trump, Harris needs 44 more electoral votes to reach 270. VP Harris needs to win the following states to cover several possible win/lose scenarios: AZ, GA, MI, NV, NC, PA, and WI. In 2020, President Biden won AZ, GA, MI, NV, PA, and WI by very small margins. AANHPI voters had the highest turnout increase in the nation at 59%, up 10 points from 2016 (source: US Census report, April 19, 2021). In 2020, 67% of AANHPI voters supported President Biden (source:What Happened in 2020, Catalist). Today, 66% of AANHPI voters surveyed by AAPI Data and APIA Vote say they will vote for Vice President Harris.

In 2024, AANHPI voters can be VP Kamala Harris’ margin of victory in the following states.

• Arizona – In 2020, Biden won by 10,457 votes (0.3%). There are 231,988 eligible AANHPI voters.

• Georgia – In 2020, Biden won by 12,670 votes (0.23%). There are 328,471 eligible AANHPI voters.

• Michigan – In 2020, Biden won by 154,188 votes (2.8%). There are 221,045 eligible AANHPI voters.

• Nevada – In 2020, Biden won 33,596 votes (2.4%). There are 226,169 eligible AANHPI voters.

• North Carolina. In 2020, Trump won by 74,481 votes (1.3%). There are 235,900 eligible AANHPI voters.

• Pennsylvania – In 2020, Biden won by 80,555 votes (1.2%). There are 333,590 eligible AANHPI voters.

• Wisconsin – In 2020, Biden won by 20,682 votes (0.6%). There are 124,157 eligible AANHPI voters.

AA4D has identified the following 501c4 groups to fund in these swing states. These local AANHPI organizations work year-round to build trust in their communities.

• AZ AANHPI Advocates Arizona
• Asian American Advocacy Fund Georgia
• Rising Voices, APIA Vote – Michigan Action One, Michigan
• One APIA Nevada
• North Carolina Asian Americans Coming Together
• Asian Pacific Islander Political Alliance Pennsylvania
• Freedom Action Now, Southeast Asian Action, Wisconsin
• Progressive Vietnamese American Organization (PIVOT)
• Asian American Power Network