Updated (Nov. 11): Asian/Americans defiant in face of Trump's triumph

MANY CIVIL RIGHTS organizations representing communities of color across the country were as shocked as all lot us when Donald Trump upset the presidential bid of Hillary Clinton.

"We will not flee this nation that we call home, and we will not abandon our dream for a world that is just, inclusive and equitable. We must and we will fight for our clients, our families, our communities, our country – for the undocumented, the working poor, the incarcerated; for those who face racism and racial profiling; for those who struggle to speak English or wear a hijab or turban in public; for those amongst us who are LGBT," read a statement from Asian Americans Advancing Justice-LA. 

"We will not give into fear. Instead, we will draw from it to make us stronger and more powerful, and we will work harder than ever to protect what we have already won and to advance opportunities for those who are at the margins."

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Senator-elect Kamala Harris had just celebrated her own victory in becoming the first Indian/American elected to the U.S. Senate for the state of California, had to use the moment to calm her supporters.

"Our ideals are at stake right now, and we all have to fight for who we are,” she said in a speech far more somber than most victory addresses. “I believe this is that moment in time for our country, where we are collectively being required to look in the mirror, and with furrowed brow, we are asking a question: Who are we? In California, I believe the answer is a good one: We are a great country.”

“It is the very nature of this fight for civil rights and justice and equality that whatever gains we make, they will not be permanent. So we must be vigilant,” Harris continued. “Do not despair. Do not be overwhelmed. Do not throw up our hands when it is time to roll up our sleeves and fight for who we are."

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Read more

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"WE ARE so disappointed in the outcome of this election, but we respect the democratic process and will work with the Trump administration to better the lives of all working people," stated American Federation of State, County, & Municipal Employees (AFSCME) International Vice President and APALA National President Johanna Puno Hester. "Now more than ever we need to ensure that our communities are not victimized by Islamophobic, sexist, homophobic, xenophobic, and racist rhetoric and actions. We need to hold America to a higher standard."

APALA Executive Director Gregory A. Cendana declared: "We’re hurting, our communities our hurting, but we won't stop fighting. Under a Trump administration, we're going to have to stand strong to fight for the issues we care about. Immigration. Black Lives Matter. Ending Islamophobia. We're taking a stand for our communities. Seeing where the hearts and minds of Americans truly lie is quite frightening. But we cannot stop now because our work to dismantle this white supremacist system becomes that much more important.”

Monica Thammarath, APALA 1st Vice President and Senior Liaison at the National Education Association (NEA), added: "This is an incredible step backwards for our country. A lot has to be said to elect a candidate who has ran a campaign on racism, misogyny, and xenophobia instead of electing the most qualified candidate in our lifetime. We must take this as a call to action and work harder than ever with local communities to strengthen the bases we have built this election year – particularly in Pennsylvania, Nevada, North Carolina, and other states – during the next four years so that in 2020 we have a president who understands and elevates our issues.”

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"We elected a man who has stated that, as President, he will immediately deport 11 million undocumented Americans – and their families," said a statement from Define American, headed by the country's most outspoken undocumented American, Jose Antonio Vargas. "He is also married to a formerly undocumented immigrant. We have hope that the personal relevance of our immigration system’s problems to our president-elect may provide common ground where we can meet to begin healing our divided country, together.

"In the meantime: all of us, documented and undocumented, have the power to decide how we treat our neighbors. Those of us with citizenship who are protected by the Constitution must come forward as allies. Your brothers and sisters who are undocumented need to know who you are. You must show up for them in the coming days and years."

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"Let us channel our anger and grief toward constructive and innovative strategizing. Yes, this is a crisis, and it is clear that business as usual cannot continue in the racial justice movement or anywhere else," read a statement from Race Forward.

"We at Race Forward will not go silent or cower in fear. This country belongs to all of us, and we can unify it under the principles of compassion and inclusion. Doing so may require more from us than we have had to give in two generations or more. It will not be easy, but there are victories to come.

"Even in the midst of this backlash, we can celebrate the fact that around the country progressives have won important local elections and ballot initiatives, including paid sick leave, minimum wage increases, background checks for gun purchases, and marijuana legalization. Racist sheriff Joe Arpaio was denied a seventh term in Arizona, and a number of progressive candidates won their local elections, including the first African-born Muslim immigrant elected to Portland, Maine’s city council. And we can celebrate the fact that our communities are here to stay. We will look out for each other and face the challenges together."

Report: Asian/Americans faced barriers to voting

Press release from the Asian American legal Defense & Education Fund:
MANY ASIAN/AMERICAN voters across the country, especially new citizens and first-time voters, encountered barriers and discrimination at polling places, including improper requests for identification, inadequate language assistance, no provisional ballots, being sent to multiple incorrect poll sites, and discrimination against American Muslim women wearing hijabs or niqabs.

The Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund (AALDEF), a New York-based national organization, dispatched more than 950 attorneys, law students, and community volunteers to 137 polling places in 14 states with large Asian American populations, where they recorded voter complaints and conducted a nonpartisan multilingual exit poll of Asian American voters. AALDEF also received reports of voting barriers via a multilingual telephone hotline, by email, and on social media.

“Asian American voters had to overcome numerous obstacles in order to exercise their right to vote today,” said Jerry Vattamala, Director of AALDEF’s Democracy Program. “Our attorneys are investigating every complaint, and we will report our findings and observations to local and state election officials, as well as the U.S. Department of Justice.”

A summary of voting problems reported on Election Day follows:

Norcross, GA
At the Lucky Shoals Community Center in Gwinnett County, where heavy voter turnout was expected, Asian/American and Latino voters were not allowed to be assisted by a person of their choice, as required by section 208 of the Voting Rights Act. Voters waited three hours on line and were sent to the wrong poll sites by poll workers. Several voting machines broke down, and poll workers said they ran out of provisional ballots.

Canton, Michigan
At Summit on the Park, a poll worker told an American Muslim female voter to remove her hijab and reveal her face before showing her voter ID.

Philadelphia, PA
Several voters at South Philadelphia Branch Library and Reed Street Presbyterian Apartments in South Philadelphia said they were sent to the wrong poll sites and not given referral slips to the correct sites. Voters were not offered provisional ballots if their names were not on the voter rolls, as required by the Help America Vote Act. In addition, there was a need for Vietnamese language assistance, but there were no on-site interpreters, and poll workers said they were not aware of AT&T Language Line services.

-At Chinese Church & Christian Center, there were long lines, with some voters waiting over two hours.

Bensalem, PA
Trump supporters followed many voters entering the poll site and looked over the shoulders of Asian/American voters who filled out AALDEF exit poll questionnaires. Voters were not given provisional ballots if their names did not appear on the voter rolls.

Fairfax, VA
At Mosby Woods Elementary School, an Asian/American voter was refused a provisional ballot after requesting one several times from a poll worker.

New York, NY
Improper requests for voter IDs. Asian/American voters were asked to present voter IDs at several poll sites, including P.S. 217 in Midwood, Brooklyn, and at PS 222 and IS 230 in Jackson Heights, Queens. Voter IDs are not required in NY, except for certain first-time voters.

-Broken voting machines. There were several reports of ballot scanner machines breaking down throughout the city, including PS 62 in Richmond Hills and Confucius Plaza in Manhattan’s Chinatown.

-At PS 214 in Flushing, Queens, one poll worker told several Asian American voters that they had to vote for all candidates on a party ticket in order for their ballots to be counted. That poll worker was later removed after our complaints to the NYC Board of Elections.

-At PS 20 in Flushing, Queens, Asian American voters said they were treated rudely by one poll worker, who refused to give voters affidavit ballots when their names could not be found in the voter rolls. Several voters also complained about poll worker misinformation when told they were at the wrong poll site.

-At PS 85 in Astoria, Queens, our poll monitors reported that interpreters were situated far away from Asian American voters, making it difficult for them to secure language assistance that was available, as required by section 203 of the Voting Rights Act.

-At P.S. 217 in Midwood, Bengali women complained they were singled out by poll workers to show voter ID because they were wearing hijabs. In addition, although many voters needed Bengali language assistance, interpreters and translated materials at Brooklyn site are not mandated under the Voting Rights Act.

-At Confucius Plaza in Manhattan’s Chinatown and PS 62 in Richmond Hill, Queens, where ballot scanners broke down, voters were not given emergency ballots. Instead, they were told to fill out regular ballots that would be scanned later, creating uncertainty about whether their votes would be counted.

Jersey City, NJ
-At Fire House on Sip Avenue, where the voting machine broke down, an Asian American voter was told to come back later when it was fixed, rather than being given an emergency ballot.

Additional information about problems reported by Asian American voters, as well as the results of AALDEF’s Asian American Exit Poll on Election Day, will be released later this week. AALDEF has conducted nonpartisan exit polls since 1988. In the 2012 presidential election, AALDEF polled 9,096 Asian American voters in 12 languages in 14 states.

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What just happened?

I'M NUMB. What just happened?

President Donald Trump. Excuse me, I feel sick to my stomach.

It's devastating to someone who believes in a pluralistic society, that diversity is an asset.

Donald Trump just scored the most stunning upset in the history of the United States -- maybe in the history of the world -- by beating Hillary Clinton for the presidency of the United States.

We won't go into all the flaws of the man who will become the 45th President of the United States. We've written about his racist, sexist, ignorant statements and the lies that he repeats over and over in other posts and we will continue to write about them.

What I want to write about is what the next four years will be like. The next four years will be rough for all us.

The whitelash that put Trump into the White House reminds us that we will have to work harder to keep the civil rights progress that we've gained over the last 60 years.

We will have to fight to keep the healthcare of the millions who enrolled in Obamacare. 

We will have to safeguard the Constitution to make sure that he adheres to that document.

We obviously don't know how Trump will rule the most powerful country in the world because he is unlike any other person who has been in that position.There is no template.

We will need to gird ourselves for the attacks that are sure to come; against Mexicans, against refugees, against immigrants, against the Chi-neese, against Muslims and hope that the rule of law holds fast.

We will have to learn to live in a world where it's OK to be say the things that Trump has spouted, opening the Pandora's box of hatred, incivility, ignorance and racism.

Republicans will hold all three branches of the government: Congress, the Supreme Court and the Executive Branch. Together, they will set the course of our country for decades.
Against all odds, the minority party, the Democrats, will have to find a way to make sure that another activist conservative is not appointed to the Supreme Court.

Our country is going to change in ways that we can only imagine in our worst nightmares.

Life won't be easy, dear friends. Pray for our country ... and get ready.

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Nov. 8: Election Day running blog --12:30 p.m.

Find out where you can vote!

The morning after ...
This live blog of yesterday, Nov. 8 was done in conjunction with AsAm News' Louis Chan.
Read the post mortem, What Just Happened?

9:10 p.m. PST
Pramila Jayapay in dead heat in Washington Congressional race

With just 4 percent of precincts reporting, Pramila Jayapay is in a 50%-50% tie with fellow Democrat Brady Walkinshaw for the 7th Congressional district in Washington state.

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9:05 p.m. PST

Ro Khanna unseats Mike Honda in California congressional race.

With 72% of the precincts reporting, Ro Khanna has a 58% – 42% lead over Rep Mike Honda. It appears that Honda will lose the seat he has had for eight terms.

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9 p.m. PST

Kamala Harris headed to victory in U.S. Senate Race

With 17 percent of the precinct reporting, Kamala Harris has a 67 percent to 33 percent victory over Loretta Sanchez. Harris defeats Sanchez and will become the first Indian American woman elected to the U.S. Senate in California.

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8:55 p.m. PST
Bera off to lead with 56% reporting
Rep. Ami Bera is leading over Republican challenger Sheriff Scott Jones 54 percent – 46 percent with 56 percent of the precincts reporting in the Sacramento congressional district.
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8:50 p.m. PST
Presidential race too close to call

CALIFORNIA'S 55 electoral votes went to Clinton as expected. She also got Oregon and Washington. Trump took Florida, North Carolina and Ohia, which wasn't expected. 

I'm stunned. The prospect of a President Trump is stomach-churning. This race is nerve-racking as the lead in Electoral votes go back and forth. No one expected the race to be this close.

Google

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8:35 p.m. PST

Asian/Americans in California back Clinton, Harris.

Asian/Americans in California supported Clinton over Trump 79 percent -13 percent, according to a pre-election poll taken by Asian American Decisions and just released. Asian Americans also backed Kamala Harris over Loretta Sanchez in the U.S. Senate race 69 percent – 29 percent. 

The 2,400 person Asian American election eve poll, sponsored by AAPI Civic Engagement Fund, Service Employees International Union (SEIU), Asian Americans Advancing Justice-Los Angeles, Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund, and the National Education Association (NEA) includes both national figures and results from these eight target states: CA, FL, IL, NV, NC, PA, VA, and TX.

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7:50 p.m. PST
The demographic everyone forgot

LATINO VOTERS turned out in droves; there was a surge of new voters among Asian/Americans and Pacific Islanders and African/Americans, who although didn't match their 2012 numbers when they voted for President Obama, were overwhelmingly for Hillary Clinton. They were joined by white, college-educated white men and women.

We were so enthralled by the coloring of America, the immigration rate from Asia and talking about the turning point for the U.S. that would make a New America.

What was underreported and took most poll watchers by surprise was the heavy turnout by white voter, who mostly supported Donald Trump's bid for the presidency. Trump's base included - in general terms - the white male, less educated vote. No one knew how many they were, no one knew how passionate they were to protect their privileged status, no one knew how to gauge the anger  and resentment that they felt in the changing demographics of the United States.

They are sending a message to the media and to people of color: "We ain't done yet."

California's polls will close in a few minutes and we'll begin posting some of the California races.

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7:40 a.m. PST

Duckworth, Krishnamoorthi headed to victory in Illinois

TAMMY DUCKWORTH is headed to victory in the U.S. Senate race against Republican challenger Mark Kirk. With 57 percent of precincts reporting, Duckworth leads Kirk 57 percent – 38 percent.

Indian/American S Raja Krishnamoorthi (D) is leading Pete DiCianni 60 – 40 percent with 63 percent of the precincts reporting. Krishnamoorthi is expected to win his first term in the heavily Democratic district.

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7:30 a.m. PST
Grace Meng wins New York Congressional Race

In New York’s 6th Congressional District, Incumbent Democrat Rep Grace Meng is leading Republican challenger Danniel S. Maio 62 to 29 with 392 or 413 precincts reporting.

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6:45 p.m.
AAPI could pick another Democratic Senator.
NEVADA AAPI voters could help place another Democrat to the U.S. Senate.

Days before Democratic Senate hopeful Catherine Cortez Masto appeared at a reception honoring Asian/American labor activists, Republican Donald Trump proposed expanding his controversial immigration ban to natives of the Philippines.

Cortez Masto — running against GOP Rep. Joe Heck in one of the nation’s most competitive Senate races, and in a rare state where Asian-American voters could tip the election — took advantage of Trump's statement.

“Under a Trump presidency, no immigrants from the Philippines would be able to come to the United States,” she told the crowd. “With Donald Trump in power and Congressman Heck enabling him and supporting him, the (Asian-American and Pacific-Islanders) community here in Las Vegas and across the country would suffer.”

In a state where AAPI make up ten percent of population, the timing couldn't be more perfect for Cortez Masto, who is running to replace Democrat Sen. Harry Reid.

In 2010, Sen. Reid upset his Republican opponent and beat the poll predictions by garnering over 80 percent of the AAPI electorate. 

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Voters turned out in big numbers. Above, California voters wait in line to cast their ballot.

6:30 p.m.
AAPI voters are showing up in record numbers
KEY BATTLEGROUND STATES have seen a hike in early voting from Asian-Americans, according to the Huffington Post.

Florida, Arizona, Virginia and North Carolina saw about twice as many early ballots from Asian-Americans this year compared to 2012, according to Catalist, a Democratic analytics firm. In Georgia, that number was almost triple.

“It’s possible in several of these states, the Asian/American population could mean the difference between victory or defeat,” Karthick Ramakrishnan, the founder of AAPI Data, a research group that focuses on Asian/American and Pacific Islander demographics and policy, told The Huffington Post. “When it comes to battleground states, it becomes a battle of yards and inches.”

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6:15 p.m. PST

CNN predicts Texas for Trump

Donald Trump has won Texas’s 38 electoral votes. Trump has 250,222 more votes than Hillary Clinton, with 3 percent reporting. Donald J. Trump is up by 5 points with 3 percent of precincts reporting.

Trump was expected to win the Lone Star State but in order to do so, he had to overcome an early wave of Latino votes concentrated along the border. The urban and suburban areas around the cities went with Trump.

At this point, Trump has more electoral votes than Clinton. I'm starting to worry. My heart rate is up.

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6 p.m. PST
Nevada will play a key role

ABOUT HALF of Nevada's electorate is either African/American, Latino or AAPI. Filipino-Americans make up almost half of the state's Asian-American population.

Nevada is one of those battleground states contested by the Hilton and Trump campaigns.

"We are the biggest Asian community population here in Nevada," said Cynthia Diriquito, Executive Director of NAFFAA Nevada.

The National Federation of Filipino-American Associations estimates there are about 120,000 Filipino-Americans living in Nevada, but many of them aren't registered voters.

"We are trying to mobilize the force of the Filipinos here in the United States to become registered voters, and for our voices to be heard," Diriquito said.

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5:25 p.m. PST

Duckworth projected as Illinois' new U.S. Senator

Tammy Duckworth

NBC Chicago is projecting that Congressmember Tammy Duckworth will defeat Incumbent Mark Kirk in the Illinois U.S. Senate race. If the voting trend holds out throughout the night, Duckworth’s victory moves the Democrats one seat closer of overtaking Republicans in the Senate and retakes the seat once held by then-Sen. Barack Obama.

“She is going to be a great senator for Illinois,” President Obama told those who attended an October fundraiser. “I cannot think of a better person to represent this state that I love.”

5:20 p.m. PST

AAPI vote will help Duckworth
In Illinois, an election eve poll by Asian American Decisions found Asian/Americans supported Clinton over Trump 84 percent – 12 percent.

Asian/American voters in Illinois supported Thai/American Tammy Duckworth over Mark Kirk for U.S. Senate by 78-21percent.

Asian/Americans supported Democratic House candidates by a 66-32 percent margin in Illinois.

The 2,400 person Asian/American election eve poll, sponsored by AAPI Civic Engagement Fund, Service Employees International Union (SEIU), Asian Americans Advancing Justice-Los Angeles, Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund, and the National Education Association (NEA) includes both national figures and results from these eight target states: CA, FL, IL, NV, NC, PA, VA, and TX.

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5:15 p.m. PST
Virginia AAPI voters favor Clinton three to one

An election eve poll by Asian American Decisions just released shows in Virginia, Asian American voters backed Clinton over Trump by 78 percent – 21 percent  Asian/Americans supported Democratic House candidates by 66 percent – 32 percent.

The 2,400 person Asian/American election eve poll, sponsored by AAPI Civic Engagement Fund, Service Employees International Union (SEIU), Asian Americans Advancing Justice-Los Angeles, Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund, and the National Education Association (NEA) includes both national figures and results from these eight target states: CA, FL, IL, NV, NC, PA, VA, and TX.

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4 p.m. - PST
Poll: AAPI early voters driven by immigration issues

POLLING by Asian American Decisions has found that 46% of Asian American voters cast their ballots before election day in early voting or vote by mail.

Exit polling has also found that Asian American voters support executive action on immigration for dreamers by 57 -24%. They also support executive action to prevent deportation of undocumented parents of U.S. citizen children by a 59-21%.

A whopping 87 percent of Asian American voters listed the economy and jobs as either the most important issue (36 percent  or one of the most important issues (51%) when deciding which candidates would get their vote.

The 2,400 person Asian American election eve poll, sponsored by AAPI Civic Engagement Fund, Service Employees International Union (SEIU), Asian Americans Advancing Justice-Los Angeles, Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund, and the National Education Association (NEA) includes both national figures and results from these eight target states: CA, FL, IL, NV, NC, PA, VA, and TX.

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3:40 p.m. -PST
George Takei busy on social media

MR. SULU - AKA actor George Takei- has been busy on his social media accounts from the moment the polls opened back east. Here's his Twitter account and his Facebook page.

Last night, on Facebook, Takei tried to calm some of his nervous fans. He wrote:

From Selma to Stonewall, Seneca Falls to Standing Rock, the history of America is often forged in a crucible of conflict and courage. Today, it is no different. We may face setback, or we may face triumph, but the direction will remain clear so long as our vision and our convictions do. You need only take measure of the passion of America’s youth--more cosmopolitan, more diverse, more rooted in science, more aware of their responsibilities as stewards of this Earth than any generation before them--to regain confidence in our national future. Look to them. We will win.

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3:15 p.m. - PST
AAPI civil rights advocates worked relentlessly

In less than a couple of hours, the polls will start to shut down on the East Coast. In this election cycle, the drive by AAPI nonprofits to step efforts to register, educate and mobilize the Asian American & Pacific Islander electorate has been unprecedented. We'll soon find out how effective that push has been.

• In 2016, close to 600 organizations participated in voter registration efforts specifically targeting Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders
• Over 32 APIAVote partners participated in 2016 voter registration efforts and continue to be involved in nonpartisan voter education and voter turnout
• Thanks to these and other efforts, researchers at AAPI Data expect nearly 5 million Asian American and Pacific Islander voters in 2016, up from 3.9 million in 2012

12:30 p.m. - PST

Voting for the first woman president?

CALIFORNIA'S Attorney General Kamala Harris cast her vote today for Hillary Clinton. She'll be awaiting the results of the Golden State's votes to find out if she will be California's first Indian/American U.S. Senator.

12 p.m. - PST

Turnout strong among Asian/American voters

ASIAN/AMERICANS in early voting have turned out in record numbers in two key battleground ground states, according to the AAPI Victory Fund.

The fund is an Asian American Super PAC which has come out in support of Hillary Clinton in the presidential election.

The Fund says a vote analysis by TargetSmart,a political data firm, found the early AAPI vote is 42.7 percent of the registered electorate in Nevada and 36.7 percent in North Carolina.

“There will be many story lines out of this election and the most important to us is that our early investments in registering and turning out the AAPI community has paid precious dividends,” said the AAPI Victory Fund in a statement. 

“More than anything it shows that despite the lack of targeting of our community’s by establishment political entities, our vote share towards Democrats is creating an emerging AAPI voting block that has profound implications on this and future.

“We have seen Virginia turn blue based, in part, on the diversity of the northern Virginia suburbs. Similar demographic trends are happening across the country, in states as diverse as Georgia, Colorado and Texas the AAPI community is an emerging electoral force.” - AsAm News

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10 a.m.
Voice of America

VOICE OF AMERICA had an article yesterday about the impact of the AAPI voters. Here's a snippet:

The levels of immigration from Asian countries now, of course, outpace the number of immigrants coming from Latin America," Schnur said. 

"The American political community hasn't quite figured that out yet, and so as a result, Asian American voters are not getting as much attention from either party as the increased number of immigrants coming from Pacific Rim countries would suggest." 

In California, the large numbers of Asian voters translate to political power, Ichinose said, referring to the finding that in the last presidential election, Asian-Americans comprise 25 percent or more of the electorate in 25 legislative districts in California. There are 38 legislative districts statewide where Asian-American voter registration exceeded the margin of victory. 

"Not only are Asian-Americans concentrated in these legislative districts, but they're concentrated in a way that means that they have real influence in the outcome of elections," Ichinose said.

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8:30 a.m.

Susan B. Anthony's headstone this morning.

No longer disenfranchised

DO YOU think the significance of Hillary Clinton's candidacy is not lost on women? This morning hundreds of people were lining up to honor the suffragette Susan B. Anthony whose efforts helped give women the right to vote.

The United States' Founding Fathers (my emphasis), forgot a few people when writing the first version of the U.S. Constitution, i.e. women and people of color.

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8 a.m.

Local races matter, too!

Local races matter

IF YOU see a bald-headed Asian/American man waving signs for Contra Costa County Supervisor Federal Glover, stop and say hello - or at least honk your horn or wave. That's me!

We know what the stakes are in the presidential race - the future of our country for the next few decades. 

Local races may not have the glamor of the national races, but they are critical. Who we pick for our school boards, city councils and county supervisors have a more immediate impact on our lives: what is taught in schools, what policies are created for our quality of life, who will fix the potholes in our streets.

I'm proud to work for a man who recognized October as Filipino American History Month and issued a countywide proclamation for the recognition, study ad celebration of Filipino American history in Contra Costa, where the 1st & 2nd Filipno Infantry Regiments trained before being shipped out of Camp Stoneman in Pittsburg, California to fight in the Pacific Theater during WWII; where FilAm farmworkers helped establish the agricultural industry in the county.

Filipino American History Month was observed for the first time in Contra Costa County, California.The county Board of Supervisor take a historical photo with leaders in the local Filipino/American community.

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7 a.m. PST

Voting matters

I STILL don't get the reasoning for voting on a Tuesday. People have to take off from work, or rush home, or get up extra early to stand in line in order to cast their ballot. It was like a regular polling site with individual booths for voting in privacy. 

Most states, including California where I live, have early voting and it was great voting on a Saturday. Apparently, it was convenient for a whole lot of people as the voting poll site was busy, busy, busy.

I'll post periodically during the day as our democratic process rolls out. If any anomalies turn up (especially against AAPI voters) I'll try to report it. More in-depth pieces will have to wait a day because today is breaking news all day. Keep checking in.

Fears arise of efforts to intimidate or suppress AAPI voters

THE 2016 election season is coming down to the wire on both national and local elections. With so much at stake, 245 AAPI candidates running for office and driven by the most contentious presidential campaign in recent memory, the effort to push AAPI voters to register and to the polls has been extensive. 

It’s no secret that in preparation for this election has included many attempts to suppress voters of color—be it North Carolina’s alleged illegal cancellation of voter registrations or the threat of voter intimidation tactics by White supremacists in states such as Pennsylania. Now, officials in historically Republican states are allegedly using harmful—and sometimes illegal—tactics to keep the voters of color from swinging the states blue, reports NBC News.

As the fastest growing ethnic group in the country, AAPI have shown to be leaning towards the Democrats, mainly because of the anti-immigrant rhetoric coming from the GOP candidate for president, Donald Trump. The Latino voters, under the same reasoning, have moved even more to the left, according to some studies. African/American voters are almost entirely in the Democratic camp because of the racist views expressed by the Trump.

To counter the shift to the left by voters of color, several states have implemented laws that are making voting more difficult for minorities.

Responding to a wave of new state voter identification and proof of citizenship laws, the Asian American Legal Defense & Education Fund (AALDEF) will monitor more than 100 poll sites to ensure compliance with the Voting Rights Act and the Help America Vote Act.

 "In the 2012 elections, Asian/Americans had to overcome numerous obstacles to exercise their right to vote," said Jerry Vattamala, AALDEF Democracy Program Director. "AALDEF volunteers identified mistranslated ballots, interpreter shortages that led to Asian American voters being turned away, and poll workers who made hostile and racist remarks about Asian American voters. 

This Tuesday, Election Day, "AALDEF will guard against the disenfranchisement of new citizens and limited English proficient voters," said Vattamala.

The 42-year old nonpartisan organization will dispatch more than 800 attorneys, law students, and community volunteers to polling places in 14 states and Washington, DC to document voting problems in the 2016 elections.

These polling places are in areas with large numbers of newly-registered Asian American voters; jurisdictions in which Asian-language assistance is provided; and sites where Asian Americans have reported voting barriers or intimidation in recent elections. 

Attorneys will check whether Asian-language voting assistance has been provided (such as ballots, interpreters, signs and voting materials) and whether provisional ballots are offered to voters whose names are not in voter lists. Attorneys will report on whether voter identification requirements are implemented in a non-discriminatory manner.

Vattamala cited a 2016 AALDEF case in which a Texas election law was struck down under the Voting Rights Act because it improperly restricted access to interpreters, Vattamala said he received a complaint this week from an Asian/American voter improperly denied language assistance during early voting in Texas.

Multilingual volunteers will be at poll sites to take complaints from voters about election irregularities and other barriers to voting. Voters can also report Election Day problems to AALDEF's toll-free hotline at 800-966-5946, or by e-mail at votingrights@aaldef.org.

AALDEF is partnering with 121 national and local groups, law firms, and student associations to mobilize volunteers for Election Day.

New voting restrictions in 14 states have had a significant impact on minority voters. Courts have successfully struck down some of these regulations, but the threat to equal access to the ballot box remains. Given that this year’s election will be the first without the full protections of the Voting Rights Act of 1964, it’s essential that voters who have historically faced discrimination at the polls can fulfill their civic duty with in-language assistance or help at the polls and without fear of intimidation.

“As we head into to the first presidential election since 1965 without the full protection of the Voting Rights Act, the 888-API-VOTE hotline is even more critical to protect and serve our electorate,” said Christine Chen, executive director of Asian and Pacific Islander American Vote (APIAVote). 

RELATED:

• Trump, Clinton commercials target AAPI voters
• AAPI volunteers sought for the elections
• AAPI candidates step into the spotlight
• Asian/Americans benefit from the Voting Rights Act
• GOP's new Southern Strategy targets immigrants

"This election hotline not only provides AAPI voters essential in-language assistance, but it also ensures that all voters, regardless of proficiency in English, will have equitable access to the ballot box,” said Chen.

Voting problems are occurring in states like Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, Virginia and Ohio. In Texas, specifically, the Mexican American Legal Defense Fund won a court case last week (Oct. 28) ordering Bexar County election officials “to immediately remove all illegal voter ID signs that contained false information,” NBC News reports. In addition, the failure for officials to provide bilingual voting information on their websites violates the Voting Rights Act.

Efforts to ensure voter intimidation  or harassment isn't allowed is severely hampered this year because of a 2013 decision by the conservative-dominated U.S. Supreme Court that severely gutted the Voting Rights Act of 1965.

As a result of that decision, in Shelby County v. Holder, the Justice Department will send observers only to jurisdictions where it already has court approval, according to the New York Times. That means only seven counties or jurisdictions in Alaska, California, Louisiana and New York will have Department of Justice observers.

“We do not want to be in the position we’re in,” Vanita Gupta, the top civil rights official at the DOJ, said in an interview. “There’s no doubt that we’re going to be spread thinner,” she added, “but our hope and our intention is that we are going to have a very robust monitoring program” on Election Day.

Hence, the need for independent observers and AAPI civil rights organizations are doing their best to step up to the plate.

“Ensuring that all voters know their rights at the polls is critical to their participation this November," said Mee Moua, executive director and president of Advancing Justice | AAJC.  As Asian Americans continue to grow in population, and turn out to vote, we must do everything we can to support their participation and make visible their political impact.”

Unless you've been living under a rock the last year, we've all heard Donald Trump claim that the elections are rigged and have asked his supporters to go to the polls to ensure that nothing "funny" is going on. 

A study by Professor Justin Levitt at Loyola University of the actual incidences of voter fraud from 2000 to 2014 pretty much debunked the claims of voter fraud. According to Levitt, there were only 31 cases of voter impersonation fraud during those years. There were more than a billion votes cast. Actual voter fraud is almost unheard of in the United States.

Despite the debunking of voter fraud, Trump's followers - if nothing else, - are passionate. Answering Trump's call, neo-Nazis, anti-government militias and white supremacists claim  to be sending "monitors" to the polls this Tuesday.

Dale Ho, director of the ACLU's Voting Rights Project. pointed out in a New York Times oped that a Trump supporter recently told The Boston Globe that he would racially profile “Mexicans. Syrians. People who can’t speak American.” And he wasn’t shy about what he’d do next: “I’m going to go right up behind them,” he said, and “make them a little bit nervous.”

"We’re witnessing merely the latest round of efforts to delegitimize and exclude minority and immigrant voters with baseless allegations of fraud. But our commitment to universal suffrage demands that every eligible voter who wants to vote has the chance, free from intimidation and harassment," wrote Ho.

"In this election, unnecessary barriers to the ballot and calls to racially profile voters are the real threats. Voter fraud is not."

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AAPI voters having an impact in early voting

Asian/Americans appear to be showing up for early voting that is allowed in 37 states 

YOU CAN'T say AAPI celebrities haven't done what they could to get AAPI voters to register to vote. They have put out numerous PSAs stating why it is important to have a voice in our democracy.

All that work appears to be having its desired effect. In the early voting conducted in 37 states, polls indicate that Asian Americans have turned out in heavier numbers than they have ever done before; Latinos are making their presence felt in states like New Mexico, Arizona, Texas, Florida and Colorado. However, the turnout of African American voters have not matched the numbers in 2012 when President Obama was running for reelection.

Early and absentee voting has exploded in popularity in recent years, as Election Day has shifted from a single day in November to a weeks-long and sometimes months-long period where voters can choose from many options to cast their ballots including by mail, at early voting sites or at Election Day polling places.

Thus far, more than 13.4 million votes have been cast, far higher than the rate in 2012, according to Associated Press data. In all, more than 46 million people —or as much as 40 percent of the electorate — are expected to vote before Election Day, Nov. 8.

Asian/American turnout in early voting has been slightly boosted this year, according to several academic and media analyses.

The collective category of mixed-race, Asian and other-race voters accounted for 209,000 ballots after the first full weekend of in-person early voting ended last Sunday.

With another week to go, that is alris eady three quarters of the entire 2012 early-voting total.

Hillary Clinton is building on the Obama coalition as Latino, Asian/American, and suburban women voters are becoming a bigger part of the Democratic coalition., according to Robbie Mook, Clinton's campaign manager. The fourth leg of the Democratic table is the African/American vote, which overwhelmingly Democratic.

Hillary Clinton's campaign strategy is turning the Democratic Party into the diverse face of America’s future.

In Nevada, a key battleground state, early voting was down but the Democratic lead widened after the start of in-person voting last week. Democrats lead in returned ballots, 46 percent to 35 percent. Ballots from older white voters declined significantly while those from Hispanics and Asian-Americans rose.

In Colorado, where early voting has been by mail, Democrats led 40 percent to 34 percent. In 2012, Democrats trailed Republicans at this point by 10 percentage points. Since then, registered Democrats have surpassed Republicans in the state.

Even in a Republican stronghold like Texas, the heavy early voting by Latinos is expected to give Clinton an edge. The state does not break down voters by political affiliation.

With just a few days before Nov. 8, Asian/American nonpartisan and partisan groups are increasing their efforts to ensure that the AAPI voice is heard in local and national contests.

“Every eligible voter in the United States should be able to cast a ballot and participate in our democracy,” said Mee Moua, executive director and president of Advancing Justice | AAJC. “Ensuring that all voters know their rights at the polls is critical to their participation this November. As Asian Americans continue to grow in population, and turn out to vote, we must do everything we can to support their participation and make visible their political impact.”

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