By love-89.com On the morning of October 19, around 200 members of the Kamala Harris Asian American campaign team, along with supporters from Northern California, departed from the San Francisco Democratic Party headquarters to canvass for votes in Nevada, a crucial swing state. The atmosphere was charged with energy as they chanted, “We cannot go backwards! Can we help Kamala win? Yes, we can!”
Leading the charge was David Chiu, a Chinese American city attorney from San Francisco, who playfully likened the campaign volunteers to Jedi knights from “Star Wars,” while asserting that Donald Trump does not stand for the “Force” or justice. He pointed out that Trump’s rhetoric, which demonizes immigrants and mislabels the COVID-19 virus, has ushered in a significant surge in anti-Asian violence, causing setbacks for the community. Chiu emphasized the importance of ensuring that Trump does not regain power and expressed pride in working with Kamala Harris, describing her as a “happy warrior” who is strong, wise, empathetic, and attuned to the needs of the Asian American community in the Bay Area. “This election presents a stark choice: do we move forward with someone who drives progress, or do we revert to the past?” he asked.
According to publicly available data, there are 266,169 Asian American voters in Nevada, a 36% increase from 2012 to 2022. They represent 11.97% of the state’s electorate, making their votes vital. Chiu highlighted a recent New York Times poll indicating that Harris leads by just 0.6% in Nevada, making every single vote critical, especially since past elections in swing states have been decided by only a handful of votes.
Chiu added that the campaign is bolstered by Asian American activists and volunteers from Southern California joining efforts in Las Vegas, while the Northern California team heads to Reno to rally support. “We need to connect with many individuals and motivate them to stop sitting on the sidelines,” he noted.
Elaine Peng, co-chair of the Kamala Harris Asian American campaign and president of the Asian American Progressive Alliance, underscored the significance of Harris’s election for the Asian community. She shared that each vote holds tremendous importance and that canvassing has often led to surprising interactions with voters. While campaigning in Reno, one encounter stood out: a woman in her sixties greeted them and mentioned that while her daughter was away, she would be voting for Harris and the Democratic Party. When Peng asked if she would also personally support Harris, the woman replied affirmatively but pointed out an oversight: her name was missing from the Democratic voter list because she was registered as a Republican yet planned to vote for Harris.
With a wink, the woman remarked, “This is a bit strange, isn’t it?” Peng took the opportunity to explain some of Harris’s plans, including tax cuts for middle-class families and expanding Medicare to cover home care services for seniors.
“I’m genuinely concerned about what will happen to me in my old age if I don’t have long-term care insurance and cannot afford a caregiver,” Peng expressed. “I don’t want my children to feel torn between their jobs and caring for me, nor do I want them to give up their careers to take care of me — that would ruin their futures.” The voter resonated with these concerns, sharing that at 65, she is still working and plans to continue until her seventies. During the pandemic under Trump’s administration, she lost her long-time job and has since had to work three low-paying jobs just to make ends meet. She no longer believes Trump cares about low-income individuals like her. With her daughter regularly working outside the home, she finds it hard to imagine getting support. “Just those two policies — cutting taxes for the middle class and expanding Medicare — are enough for me to firmly back Kamala Harris,” she concluded.