Inside a room at the North Carolina General Assembly, a few dozen people listened to Fayetteville City Council member Mario Benavente share how he got elected in 2022.
鈥淚 won my city council election by just six votes,鈥� he said, sparking applause and praise from attendees. 鈥淪o it speaks very directly that every vote counts. The Asian American vote came out in a way that a lot of folks never came out before. We had folks at the polls that came out to vote for the first time in a municipal election.鈥�
Benavente, the first Korean American elected official in North Carolina, was speaking at Asian American Advocacy Day, an event the nonprofit North Carolina Asian Americans Together (NCAAT) organized on May 8 to help Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders meet directly with state legislators to discuss issues that impact their communities. Chavi Khanna Koneru is the nonprofit鈥檚 co-founder and executive director.
鈥淭his is a really important time for Asian Americans in the state because we are the margin of victory in some really key counties in the state,鈥� Khanna Koneru said to attendees. 鈥淎nd it shows folks in the state that we have power, which means we have to be heard.鈥�
At just 4% in total, Asian Americans represent a relatively small amount of North Carolina鈥檚 overall population. However, in the United States, according to the Pew Research Center. And throughout the South, their population is increasing rapidly 鈥� in North Carolina, the AAPI population jumped by 68% from 2010 to 2020. Currently, there are more than 450,000 people in the state who identify as AAPI, representing more than 20 ethnicities.
Compared to other racial groups, . But academic experts and advocacy groups emphasize that it鈥檚 not due to a lack of interest in politics. In North Carolina, a growing number of Asian American advocates and elected officials are making significant efforts to make voting more accessible and raise civic engagement among their communities.
A powerful but overlooked voting bloc
Asian Americans have historically had relatively low voter turnout rates, but . The turnout from AAPI voters made an impact in some swing states, , where President Joe Biden won by a small margin.
And yet, a large portion of Asian Americans in North Carolina, , report that political campaigns have never contacted them regarding elections. According to a 2022 survey conducted by NC Asian Americans Together and the U.S. Immigration Policy Center, for that year鈥檚 November midterm elections.
鈥淔or many people, we were the first outreach that they had,鈥� said Shruti Parikh, NC Asian Americans Together鈥檚 head of education and voter engagement.
Political parties tend to overlook Asian Americans largely because they do not have a long voting history, so parties are less certain if Asian Americans will support their candidates, said Janelle Wong, professor of government and American studies at the University of Maryland and co-director of .
鈥淭here's little investment in Asian American turnout,鈥� Wong said. 鈥淎nd then because that group is not mobilized and not contacted to vote, they might also then vote at lower rates. So we see this kind of vicious cycle.鈥�
When there is outreach to AAPI communities, those efforts tend to assume that Asian Americans mainly care about education, Wong said.
鈥淧eople really misunderstand the Asian American vote,鈥� she said. 鈥淪o they rely on stereotypes, and they often think because of the model minority myth, the idea that Asian Americans have a special value for education, they think Asian Americans are really preoccupied with educational issues.鈥�
鈥淚n fact, Asian Americans don't rank education as the very top issue,鈥� she added. 鈥淟ike other voters, they are most concerned about the economy, and jobs, and inflation. And they are no more likely to say that education is a top issue for them than other voters.鈥�
has shown that Asian American voters tend to rank the economy, environmental issues, and healthcare as the most important issues to them. This is partly because Asian Americans, on the whole, tend to lean more politically left than the general population, Wong said. The Pew Research Center鈥檚 data supports this as well, but notes that .
Among North Carolina鈥檚 AAPI population, 52% are , 31% as Democrats and 17% as Republican, according to Carolina Demography.
When asked about outreach to Asian Americans, Minu Lee, chair of the NC Democratic Party鈥檚 AAPI Caucus, said that the party is working on new strategies to better engage with communities during this election year.
鈥淲e鈥檙e knocking on their doors, calling folks up, impressing upon everyone that hey, there鈥檚 an important election coming up that expands beyond the presidential level,鈥� he said. 鈥淲e have to make sure Republicans don鈥檛 get control of that governor鈥檚 mansion. We have to elect council of state candidates who will invest, not divest, in our communities. We need to elect judicial candidates who will stand up for our rights and break that supermajority in the General Assembly.鈥�
In March, the Biden campaign announced the launch of a aimed at Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander (AANHPI) voters living in battleground states.
鈥淩epublicans are committed to winning the votes of all individuals and families this year,鈥� a spokesman for the NC Republican Party emailed in a statement to 深夜福利. 鈥淭he issues that are important to voters: inflation, cost of living, Biden鈥檚 open Southern border, and school choice, all affect Asian Americans. Our party puts forth a family first agenda that makes the lives of all North Carolinians better and that is the key to winning up and down the ballot this year.鈥�
Representation is increasing, but challenges persist
In the state legislature and across municipal offices, Asian American representation has been building over the past decade. Many are the first to represent their communities, such as Sen. Jay Chaudhuri, D-Wake, the first Indian American state legislator in North Carolina, and Rep. Ya Liu, D-Wake, and Rep. Maria Cervania, D-Wake, who in 2022 both became the first Asian American women elected to the legislature.
鈥淚t鈥檚 actually the increased level of political engagement in the Asian community that got me that win,鈥� Liu told 深夜福利, noting that she won in a largely Republican district. 鈥淢ost of my volunteers were Asian Americans.鈥�
But even in positions of power, some have expressed challenges in advocating for their communities. For example, in 2023 that would require the teaching of Asian American history in K-12 curriculum in the state. But even with bipartisan support, that effort has been stalled. At a press conference during Asian American Advocacy Day, Liu said 鈥渢here wasn鈥檛 enough interest鈥� in the bill, but she鈥檚 still interested in pushing it forward.
At that same press conference, Rep. Cervania shared how redistricting this year would change her district. With the new maps, District 41 would shift from covering Cary and Apex, to covering Cary, Morrisville, and the Brier Creek area of northwest Raleigh.
鈥淭he majority is designing voter suppression laws that鈥檚 drawing these maps. 鈥hey want to crack and pack the AAPI community and dilute our voices. This is a sign that our advocacy is actually working,鈥� she said.
She also said that she鈥檚 treated differently than her other colleagues at the legislature.
鈥淚'm often told 鈥� that I don't look like other legislators and I'm not always treated like one,鈥� Cervania said. 鈥淏ut I cannot let this discourage me and my fellow legislators from helping our community because it's so important and we don't want to foster that worry and doubt. 鈥� We have a powerful voice and we're not going to allow anyone to let us think otherwise.鈥�
Many of the participants at Asian American Advocacy Day prepared to talk to lawmakers about their support for DEI and ethnic studies, protections for voter ID exceptions and the establishment of an independent redistricting commission. But not all Asian Americans lean progressive. Some Asian Americans in the state, such as the group , tend to lean to the conservative side of the aisle. While there are fewer Asian American Republicans among the state鈥檚 elected officials, their influence is growing as well.
For example, Raleigh-based Kenny Xu has been building notoriety in the past few years as , the plaintiffs in the Affirmative Action lawsuit against Harvard and UNC, arguing that race-based admissions hurt Asian American applicants. He also is the co-founder and president of an anti-DEI advocacy group, Color Us United, which to get rid of its DEI task force. The group also has received .
Xu had attempted to run for Congress in North Carolina鈥檚 13th district, but lost the primary in March. He received 4.3% of the vote and finished sixth in a field of 14 candidates. Brad Knott won that election after a second primary in May.
鈥淚 ran for two reasons,鈥� Xu told 深夜福利. 鈥淥ne was to support my country and to share with my country the increasing problems of DEI and CRT (Critical Race Theory) in all kinds of professions, whether it鈥檚 in the schools, military, higher ed, medicine. I thought if I won, then I would get to act on it in Congress, but if I didn鈥檛 win, I would get to expose it to the wider population.鈥�
Xu said he believes that DEI efforts do not promote inclusion, but rather 鈥渁 more divided, fractured society, where people of different races dislike each other.鈥� While Xu鈥檚 values differ greatly from NCAAT鈥檚, the one thing they have in common is the belief that the Asian American electorate in NC should not be underestimated.
鈥淲e actually have a fairly strong Asian American coalition here in North Carolina,鈥� Xu said. 鈥淓ven though we are small, we are mighty and we鈥檙e productive. That鈥檚 the other thing 鈥� we鈥檙e productive, meaning we actually have wealth to spend on political candidates.鈥�
'We've become that trusted messenger'
At the local level, Asian American advocacy groups are primarily taking on the labor of mobilizing voters in their communities ahead of elections. Shruti Parikh at NCAAT oversees the endorsement of candidates at their sister political advocacy organization, NCAAT in Action. She said their work has helped guide many Asian American voters at elections.
鈥淲e send out slate cards to our community of people we鈥檝e endorsed,鈥� Parikh said. 鈥淎nd we鈥檝e seen people show up to polling sites with our slate cards in their hand. So we know that our message is working, we鈥檝e become that trusted messenger.鈥�
Parikh said that NCAAT in Action plans to announce its endorsements in August.
Asian American community organizers are also trying to make voting more accessible for those with low English proficiency. At a picnic hosted by the North Carolina chapter of the Chinese American Friendship Association in April, Shuyun Mu set up a voter registration booth, where she said she had just helped register a grandmother.
鈥淪he doesn't understand English well,鈥� Mu said. 鈥淭hat's the reason, even (though) she's a citizen, she never registered because she's afraid her English is bad and (would) not be able to understand the process of registering. But today we helped her.鈥�
Mu hears this often from other Asian immigrants, which is partly why she鈥檚 dedicated herself to addressing the challenges her community experiences at the polls. Mu is the board chair of a , which stands for Margin of Victory Empowerment Fund North Carolina, in December to raise civic engagement among Asian Americans in the state. The group has also .
Mu, who moved to the U.S. in 1998 from China, said she鈥檚 felt for many years that politicians have ignored Asian Americans, but the rise of anti-Asian violence during the COVID-19 pandemic pushed her to take action.
鈥淒uring COVID, I realized how weak our voice was,鈥� Mu said. 鈥淲e are always voiceless and the policymakers don鈥檛 realize we actually have so many needs 鈥� we need protection from discrimination, we need (access to) social services, healthcare programs, education programs.鈥�
MOVENC wants to expand the AAPI voter base not just by registering voters, but also by encouraging green card holders to apply for citizenship. However, Mu said she often finds it challenging to persuade people in her community to vote.
鈥淚 talked to many friends. Many of them think voting is not important because they think they cannot change anything. It's wrong,鈥� Mu said. 鈥淚t was really tiring to persuade them to participate, to register, to vote. If we have many, many Asian Americans realize we should participate, our voice will be bigger and will be heard and the policymakers will realize our power.鈥�
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Are you an AAPI voter in North Carolina and would like to share your thoughts on the 2024 elections? Please reach out to reporter Eli Chen at elichen@wunc.org.
