Indian Americans overwhelmingly favor Harris over Trump, says a new Indian American Impact poll

Indian Americans overwhelmingly favor Harris over Trump, says a new Indian American Impact poll

By Mayank Chhaya-

With barely 18 days to go for the November 5 presidential election, Vice President Kamala Harris has emerged as an overwhelming favorite among Indian American voters, according to a new poll.

The poll by Indian American Impact (IAI) Fund, that represents Indian and South Asian communities, found that Harris has a whopping 48% lead over her Republican rival, former President Donald Trump, among Indian American voters in battleground states.
The poll was conducted among 600 likely Indian American voters in Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, North Carolina and Pennsylvania. The poll also found that Harris voters are far more motivated than Trump voters 80% to 66%.

IAI said inflation, the economy and abortion are the main concerns in the election even as it found that a vast majority of the South Asian electorate remains firmly pro-choice with 76% saying abortion should be legal all or most of the time.

Harris is also trusted more than Trump across many parameters, the poll found.

There are 400,000 South Asian American voters in the five battleground states, according to IAI. With the election predicted to be extremely close their preference could make a decisive difference.

On a separate note, background conversations that Indica News has had with some Indian Americans reveal that one major worry among the community is the strong presence of white supremacist elements within Trump’s core support base, many of whom describe America as a Christian country.

Even those avowedly pro-Hindu Indian Americans, who have been swayed by Trump’s effusive praise of their hero, India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi, now feel worried about the prospect of the former president’s victory emboldening white supremacist elements. They apprehend that non-Christian communities in the country, including Hindus, could come under pressure. This is ironic because many Indian Americans are favorably disposed towards the idea of India officially becoming a Hindu nation.

Meanwhile, nearly two and a half months after winning her historic nomination for president by the Democratic Party on August 5, Harris remains a viable candidate to win the race, but her general favorability has not ignited into something spectacular. Even though there was considerable excitement in the immediate aftermath of her nomination, her candidacy has now settled into the touch-and-go zone where she could win but equally lose with some minor upsets in the battleground states.

That is why Indian American voters turning out for her in the five states could be of great consequence. She has been circumspect in not specifically appeal to them for their votes even as she has gone around the country and on media networks trying to reach those undecided voters who do not want to support Trump but are not fully convinced about Harris either.

It is in this context that her assertion in a contentious interview with Bret Baier on Fox News that her presidency will not be a continuation of President Joe Biden’s presidency becomes significant. She said, “Let me be very clear, my presidency will not be a continuation of Joe Biden’s presidency”, adding that as a new generation leader she will bring “fresh and new ideas.” She needs that differentiation in order to persuade centrist and moderate undecided voters to choose her over Trump.

If fund-raising is any measure of Harris’s winnability, then she seems to be on a firm ground. Her campaign has crossed the $1 billion mark in their fund-raising, which is an extraordinary feat by any measure. Her supporters have put their money where their mouths are. The question is whether they will also put their votes where it matters to her.