iNDICA NEWS BUREAU-
With the new wave of Indian Americans on the rise US political scene, ‘keep the momentum going’ seems to be the mantra for the community advocates. Especially for the Indian American advocacy and political action committee, IMPACT, as they have launched a whopping $2.5 million campaign to turn out Asian American voters in Georgia ahead of the January Senate runoffs.
The group said the funds will be used to reach a slightly wider audience in the state, through digital, mail, and turnout operations.
Neil Makhija, the Executive Director of IMPACT, said that “You can’t tell the suburban vote story without telling the Asian American vote story.”
While Indian Americans took the spotlight during the election season, getting the support of the extended Asian American community can make a much larger impact. The Dems definitely seem to have realized the potential of this influential group.
Makhija added, “The Democratic Party couldn’t win the presidency or the Senate without Asian Americans. In November, South Asian and Asian American voters were the critical difference between victory and defeat in Georgia, Pennsylvania, and Arizona.”
He also noted that there was a substantial increase in the turnout of the Asian Americans than any other demographic, especially Georgia with double the numbers than the previous elections.
“Asian Americans are becoming a core constituency of the Democratic Party, but they can’t be taken for granted,” said Makhija.
“We are poised to play a critical role in January for the Georgia Senate runoff races,” Makhija continued.
“IMPACT’s historic investment over the remaining weeks of the campaign will harness this emerging power of South Asian and Asian American voters to help deliver Georgia and control of the U.S. Senate for Democrats. This election can play a transformative role for the Biden-Harris Administration and for our country, and Asian Americans realize that —which is why they’re already turning in their ballots in record numbers.”
In November’s general election, AAPI voters — the fastest-growing demographic nationally and in the state of Georgia — helped swing Georgia for Democrats for the first time in more than 25 years.
IMPACT’s new Georgia campaign follows its $10 million campaign in November focused on targeting Asian American voters in Pennsylvania and Arizona, the largest-ever effort to target South Asian voters.
Fast facts:
- This year, Georgia saw a 91 percent increase in AAPI voter turnout over 2016, and exit polls showed Asian American voters preferred Joe Biden to President Trump by a 2 to 1 margin.
- This growth in turnout compared to 2016 far exceeded other racial and ethnic groups: white turnout increased 16 percent, black turnout increased 20 percent, and Latinx turnout increased by 72 percent.
- An additional 42,000 AAPI voters voted in 2020 over 2016 and more than 30,000 AAPI voters voted for the first time ever. Biden won Georgia by just over 14,000 votes.
- Asian American voters saw the highest increase in turnout among any demographic.
- Asian Americans are the fastest-growing demographic in Georgia (and nationally), and Indian Americans are the largest Asian American group in Georgia.
- While the general eligible voting population in Georgia grew 9% between 2012 and 2018, the Indian American voting population grew by 231%.
- There are an estimated 238,000 eligible AAPI voters in Georgia.
