AAPI Democratic Caucus at the Nevada Caucus 2020

The Nevada Caucuses proved to be the first real opportunity for the Democratic candidates to show that they can bring together a diverse coalition. A majority-minority state, Nevada is home to about three million Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders (AAPI), the fastest-growing community in America. And our friends at the AAPI Democratic Caucus (AAPI DC) were there to make sure our voices were heard, our presence was felt and our issues were discussed.  The week started with an AAPI DNC dinner on Tuesday, the Democratic Debate on Wednesday and Caucus Day on Saturday. AAPI DC took over our social media and shared live updates all along the way!

The number of eligible AAPI voters in the Silver state grew 35 percent between 2010 to 2016, and our community could easily be the margin of victory in the general election.  As we continue to grow in size, candidates are taking proactive steps to reach out and mobilize our community. For example, the Warren campaign set up an office in Las Vegas Chinatown, as did the Yang campaign before its suspension. Similarly, the Buttigieg and Sanders campaigns were present at the Las Vegas Spring Festival.

At the DNC dinner on Tuesday, Seema Nanda, CEO of the DNC and the first Indian American woman to head the organization, joined us and committed to volunteering alongside us during the Caucus. Nanda addressed the audience and pointed out that our presence in Nevada, 10 percent of the state population and 167 percent growth since 2000, was formidable. She went on to say that “these are incredible numbers for me. Growing up in a very homogenous community in Connecticut, I am in awe of visiting vibrant communities like yours. If we don’t see ourselves as the faces of the party, as the people who can be leading, we end up giving our power before we can even have it.”

We also had Assemblywoman Rochelle T. Nguyen, the first AAPI Democratic legislator in Nevada, Assemblywoman Selena Torres, and Rep. Susie Lee join us. She predicted that “Nevada is going to show the country what diversity means.”

At the debate we made sure to have AAPI participants in the audience to demonstrate our strength. Dan Santos, chair of AAPI DC, attended the debate. Santos shared that, like many in our community, he became more involved in politics after Donald Trump was elected president. He recalls the 2016 elections results as “a shock, slap in the face and a wake-up call.” Alongside Santos at the debate, was Councilman Isaac Baron, who expressed his pride in representing the Latino community while working with the AAPI community. Our two communities have a long history in banding together to fight for civil and human rights, dating back to the 1970s when the Filipino community started the National Farm Workers Union.

The Nevada Caucus was a historic one; for the first time, Tagalog was printed on the ballot. More than 70 thousand Nevadans participated in early voting and more than 50 percent were first-time Caucus-goers. Furthermore, many of the Caucus volunteers were recruited by AAPI DC. Even Congressman Ted Lieu, Democrat from neighboring California, stopped by one of the Caucus sites, Bonanza High School Caucus, to offer his support to the community.

Maggie Tsai of APALA National, tweeted how happy she was to get a chance to volunteer at the Caucus, “I was honored to help a Korean auntie and uncle participate in the Caucus. They were patient and so kind to me, and my heart is full!”

At the Nevada Caucus 36 delegates were up for grabs. Bernie Sanders won the Caucus with the most delegates, passing this first test in diversity. Next up is Super Tuesday, with California on the line, a state where our community will play another major role.

DNC CEO Seema Nanda at the AAPI Dinner

Members of AAPI DC Nevada at the Democratic Debate

Caucus Volunteers from AAPI DC

Rep. Ted Lieu at Caucus site with site leader Emily Ku