{"id":83828,"date":"2026-09-11T00:18:35","date_gmt":"2026-09-11T07:18:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lapost.us\/?p=83828"},"modified":"2026-09-11T00:18:35","modified_gmt":"2026-09-11T07:18:35","slug":"survey-finds-90-of-aapi-registered-voters-plan-to-cast-ballots-in-midterms","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lapost.us\/?p=83828","title":{"rendered":"Survey Finds 90% Of AAPI Registered Voters Plan To Cast Ballots in Midterms"},"content":{"rendered":"
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By<\/span>Nicole Chang<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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Nine in 10 registered Asian American and Pacific Islander voters say they plan to vote in the November midterm elections, signaling strong interest from one of the nation\u2019s fastest-growing electorates.<\/p>\n

The\u00a02026 AAPI Voter Survey<\/a>, released by APIAVote and AAPI Data, found that intent to vote in the midterm elections has risen steadily, up from 84% in 2022 to 86% in 2018.<\/p>\n

Karthick Ramakrishnan, founder of AAPI Data, said the findings are important because they can help community organizations better understand AAPI voters and identify where more voter education and outreach are needed.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s going to be a very consequential election, and I hope that these insights can be helpful to our partners in ways to make sure that our communities are informed and engaged,\u201d Ramakrishnan said. \u201cPrior elections have had consequences, and this election will have major consequences as well.\u201d<\/p>\n

He said the challenge over the next several months is to make sure voters understand how decisions made after previous elections have affected their lives and what is at stake in November.<\/p>\n

There are an estimated 16 million eligible AAPI voters nationwide this year, and their electoral share has steadily increased over the past 15 years. That growth comes as many important congressional races continue to be decided by narrow margins.<\/p>\n

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Margin of victory<\/strong><\/h2>\n

AAPI midterm participation has increased sharply over the past decade.<\/p>\n

Asian American voter turnout rose from 27% in 2014 to 40% in 2018 and remained at 40% in 2022. Pacific Islander turnout increased from 37% in 2014 to 43% in 2018 and stood at 41% in 2022.<\/p>\n

While 90% of respondents said they plan to vote in November, voting intentions varied across ethnic groups.<\/p>\n

Japanese American voters reported the highest level, with 96% saying they planned to vote, followed by Asian Indian voters at 92% and Filipino voters at 91%.<\/p>\n

The figure was 88% among Chinese American voters and 86% among both Korean and Vietnamese American voters.<\/p>\n

The growing electorate could be especially important in close House races, where relatively small changes in turnout may affect which party controls Congress.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe AAPI electorate has been growing, and a lot of the time the AAPI electorate is larger than the margin of victory, especially in key battleground states that will determine control of the House,\u201d said Christy Choi, director of strategic communications at APIAVote.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe believe that\u2019s where we can make the difference \u2014 being the margin of victory, especially in battleground states,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

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Cost of living remains top concern<\/strong><\/h2>\n

The survey did not directly ask respondents why they intend to vote, but it found that economic pressures are likely to play a central role in their decisions.<\/p>\n

Cost of living and inflation ranked as the top issue, with 90% of Asian American voters saying it was very or extremely important in deciding how to vote. Fifty-nine percent rated it extremely important.<\/p>\n

\u201cCost of living and inflation \u2014 this issue has dominated ever since 2024,\u201d Ramakrishnan said. \u201cEven in 2024, it was the top issue. Remains so today.\u201d<\/p>\n

The concern was widespread across ethnic groups. Cost of living and inflation were rated very or extremely important by 95% of Filipino voters, 92% of Japanese American voters and 90% of Korean American voters.<\/p>\n

The figure was 87% among Asian Indian voters, 86% among Chinese American voters and 84% among Vietnamese American voters. Among Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander voters, 97% rated the issue very or extremely important.<\/p>\n

\u201cHousing and health care are among the major contributors to household financial pressure,\u201d said Ramakrishnan.<\/p>\n

AAPI communities tend to be concentrated in metropolitan areas where housing was already costly or has become increasingly unaffordable, he said. Health care costs have also become a growing concern as families face higher premiums and uncertainty over coverage.<\/p>\n

Health care ranked second among Asian American voters, with 82% calling it very or extremely important. Jobs and unemployment and Social Security and Medicare each followed at 80%.<\/p>\n

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36% say neither party leads on cost of living<\/strong><\/h2>\n

AAPI registered voters currently favor Democratic candidates over Republicans in both House and Senate races.<\/p>\n

\u201cBottom line: API voters favor Democratic candidates over Republican candidates when we look at it in the Senate or the House,\u201d Ramakrishnan said.<\/p>\n

If the House election were held now, 63% of registered AAPI voters said they would support the Democratic candidate, compared with 24% for the Republican candidate and 10% for another party.<\/p>\n

In Senate races, Democrats led Republicans 60% to 25%.<\/p>\n

The Democratic advantage, however, varies considerably by ethnicity.<\/p>\n

In House races, Democratic support was highest among Japanese American voters at 70%, followed by Asian Indian voters at 66% and Chinese American voters at 64%.<\/p>\n

Korean American voters favored Democrats 58% to 27%, while Vietnamese voters favored Democrats 55% to 26%. Filipino voters showed the narrowest Democratic advantage, 54% to 35%.<\/p>\n

The survey also found that many AAPI voters do not believe either party is clearly better at addressing their concerns.<\/p>\n

On cost of living and inflation, 44% said Democrats would do a better job handling the issue, compared with 18% who chose Republicans. Another 36% said neither party was better.<\/p>\n

Ramakrishnan said that latter group represents an important persuadable segment of the electorate.<\/p>\n

\u201cAbout a third say that neither party is doing a better job on the issue, and so that represents a persuadable population,\u201d he said, adding that those voters also need more consistent outreach outside the immediate election cycle.<\/p>\n

One-third not contacted by either party<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Despite high voting interest, about one-third of AAPI registered voters said they had not been contacted by either major political party.<\/p>\n

Forty-two percent reported no contact from the Democratic Party regarding the 2026 election over the past year, while 58% said they had received no contact from the Republican Party.<\/p>\n

Overall, about 33% had heard from neither party.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo it\u2019s about a third of our population [that] has not been contacted by either party at all,\u201d Ramakrishnan said.<\/p>\n

Community organizations are filling some of that gap.<\/p>\n

Among voters who had not been contacted by either Democrats or Republicans, about 8% had received outreach from a community organization.<\/p>\n

\u201cCommunity organizations are filling a critical void, where our registered voters are not being contacted by the parties,\u201d Ramakrishnan said.<\/p>\n

Even with that outreach, however, about 25% of AAPI registered voters said they had not been contacted by a political party or community organization.<\/p>\n

Ramakrishnan said the finding shows that both partisan campaigns and nonpartisan organizations need additional resources to reach voters before November.<\/p>\n

The Democratic Party has done a better job than the Republican Party in contacting AAPI voters, according to the survey, but both parties are still missing a substantial portion of an electorate that is increasingly capable of influencing close races.<\/p>\n

The survey was conducted from June 3 through July 27 among 2,066 registered AANHPI voters, including 1,896 Asian American and 170 Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander respondents. Interviews were conducted by phone, online and MMS-to-web.<\/p>\n

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\"Nicole<\/a><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

NICOLE CHANG<\/a><\/h2>\n

Nicole Chang is a media veteran with 25+ years in journalism and community service, including at\u00a0The Korea Daily<\/em>, where she led coverage on public issues and managed content across platforms. She regularly covers immigration and the Korean American community for ACoM.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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