Manka Dhingra's Decisive Victory in Washington State Special Election Returns Control to the Democrats
Manka Dhingra's Decisive Victory in Washington State Special Election Returns Control to the Democrats
SEATTLE—AAPI Victory Fund congratulates Washington State Senator-elect Manka Dhingra on her Special Election victory in the 45th Legislative District. As one of the most-watched elections in the nation and the most expensive legislative race in the state's history, Dhingra's victory returns state control to the Democrats. Washington becomes the eighth state where Democrats control both the governorship and legislature. The AAPI Victory Fund endorsed Dhingra in July and has worked to engage and mobilize Washington's Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) community."Our goal as we head toward the midterm elections is to reclaim progressive political power on the state and federal level, and to demonstrate the political might of the Asian American and Pacific Islander community," said Shekar Narasimhan, chairman and co-founder of the AAPI Victory Fund. "We were pleased to endorse Senator-elect Manka Dhingra and we celebrate her victory. Investing in mobilizing the local Asian American and Pacific Islander community yielded concrete results, and the AAPI Victory Fund will continue to support candidates that recognize the importance of our community and stand for our values."Recent elections have shown AAPIs trending toward voting for progressive candidates. During the 2016 presidential elections, 79 percent of AAPIs voted for Hillary Clinton. AAPIs are estimated to represent 15 percent of the 45th Legislative District and Dhingra's victory reaffirms this national trend."Manka's victory underscores the political impact of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders," said former Washington Governor Gary Locke. "Not only can we swing the electorate, we are increasingly running for office and winning. We are grateful for the work of the AAPI Victory Fund. Washingtonians will now have a government that will focus on issues ranging from education to expanding benefits and services to the middle-class and those most vulnerable to the regressive policies of the Trump Administration."The AAPI Victory Fund's partnership with on the ground local partners was instrumental to its success in creating an inclusive and effective AAPI outreach campaign. This model sets the standard for national Super PACs in the 2018 elections.AAPI voters are set to make up the margin of victory in an increasing number of races. Election Day victories in Washington State and in Virginia prove that mobilizing and engaging AAPI voters represents the biggest return on political investment for progressives and Democrats.
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