AAPI Victory Fund Announces New Endorsements in WA, VA, and NJ 2017 Races

AAPI Victory Fund Announces New Endorsements in Washington and Virginia 2017 Races

WASHINGTON—The AAPI Victory Fund, the first super PAC dedicated to mobilizing Asian American and Pacific Islander voters, today announced key endorsements in 2017 Washington State and Virginia races.According to Varun Nikore, President of the AAPI Victory Fund, “The AAPI Victory Fund is proud to support candidates with strong progressive credentials who represent a highly engaged and motivated AAPI community. We are seeing an unprecedented level of energy in the AAPI community from running for office to knocking on doors. As progressives work to reclaim political power in 2017 and beyond, it is critical that we invest in engaging and mobilizing the AAPI community.”

• In Washington, the AAPI Victory Fund announced the endorsement of Manka Dhingra in the State Senate special election race in the 45th district. The stakes are high in this election, which is arguably the most important and competitive state legislative race in the country. A victory will flip the Washington State Senate and make Washington State the seventh state where Democrats control both the governorship and state legislature; in contrast, Republicans currently have total control in 26 states. Given that AAPI voters will likely comprise 15% of the electorate in the special election, winning this race is one of the AAPI Victory Fund’s top priorities in 2017.

“The Washington State special election race is the singular most important race for AAPIs in the country this year,” said former Washington Governor Gary Locke. “Flipping the state senate will pave the way for a progressive agenda that will directly benefit AAPIs on a range of issues from education to expanding the middle class.”

• In Virginia, the AAPI Victory Fund announced the endorsements of Ralph Northam for Governor, Justin Fairfax for Lieutenant Governor, and Mark Herring for Attorney General. Statewide, AAPI voters make up 7% of the voting population in Virginia.

Shekar Narasimhan, Chairman of the AAPI Victory Fund, said “All eyes will be on Virginia, where elections this November will serve as a barometer of the national mood since the election of Donald Trump. With recent polls showing a close election, it is critical that we mobilize AAPI voters to elect progressives at the top of the ticket.”In addition to its new endorsements, the AAPI Victory Fund also will be investing in AAPI community education, engagement, and mobilization efforts in each of these races, relying on both proven digital and offline approaches. This includes the creation of new state-level PACs in Washington State and Virginia.These efforts will build on the success of recent efforts to mobilize AAPI voters in the recent Special Election in Georgia’s 6th Congressional District. Despite the narrow loss of Democratic candidate Jon Ossoff, the New York Times and Politico each highlighted disproportionately high AAPI voter turnout levels. The increased level of AAPI voter engagement, in part due to the AAPI Victory Fund’s participation, is consistent with the community’s 2016 performance across the country, when more than 1.1 million new AAPI voters turned out to vote across the country compared to 2012.With AAPI voters set to make up the margin of victory in an increasing number of races, and given the community’s increasing support for Democratic candidates, mobilizing AAPI voters may represent the biggest return on political investment for progressives and Democrats.

Learn more about the AAPI Victory Fund at https://aapivictoryfun.wpengine.com/

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