At least 104 Asian Pacific American delegates and alternates from across the country, along with another 400 to 500 APA supporters of the Republican Party, plan to be on hand when the GOP stages its national convention in New York City.Many attendees hope to demonstrate that APAs can play an important role in helping President Bush win a very close re-election campaign.
In an all-day event not officially sponsored by the Republican National Committee, APA Republicans are putting together a conference and banquet at the Marriott Marquis Hotel.
Many delegates will also attend a Bush-Cheney reception for Asian Pacific Americans at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel. Matt Fong, a member of the Bush-Cheney ’04 Asian Pacific American Steering Committee, and Secretary of Labor Elaine Chao are helping to rally the community’s support for the Republican ticket and offering their expertise in running campaigns effectively.
ON THE STRENGTH OF THE APA VOTE:
“The fastest growing population in the United States in terms of percentages are not the Hispanics; they are the APIs. The party leadership has to understand that, and we as API leaders and elected representatives have an additional and special role in making sure our voices are heard.”
— Van Tran,
Garden Grove City Council member and candidate for the California Assembly
“We have been registering a lot of Asian Americans, especially those people who just became American citizens. We’ve signed up more than 1,500 people to show our support for President Bush.”
— Dr. Grace Shu,
of Montoursville, Penn.
“We have staff and a big operation in Washington [state], Oregon, California, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania and Florida. We are organizing Chinese Americans and Indian Americans in Michigan. Those are key states, and that’s where we are actively organizing Asian Americans.”
— Mina Nguyen, Bush-Cheney ’04 regional coalitions director
“We’re planning an Asian Pacific American expedition to the battleground states. It will be headed by Frank Joe, a Vietnamese American and founder of Little Saigon. After the convention, he’s going to take a group of Asian leaders of different ethnic backgrounds to the battleground states to encourage Asian Americans to register and vote.”
— Dr. John Tsu of Millbrae, Calif., conference organizer
“[Both parties] will make a big pitch for [the API] vote this fall. It’s a critical vote that could prove to be decisive. I think that a lot more Asians and Pacific Islanders are thinking critically and not voting traditionally and looking around for stronger leadership.”
— Barbara Marumoto, delegate and member of Hawai‘i’s House of Representatives
“Asian Americans need better health care, particularly for cardiovascular diseases, cancer, hepatitis and many other chronic illnesses. It is evident the community has a lot of health needs compared to the other ethnic Americans.”
— Dr. Lupo Carlota, chairman of the new National Asian American Republican Coalition from Memphis, Tenn.
“Nobody understands the priorities of our community better than this president. … With our help, he will be re-elected to a second term.”
— Matt Fong, former California state treasurer
“We would like [President Bush] to help lead the fight against the HIV/AIDS epidemic, tuberculosis, and malaria in China and other Asian countries.”
— Dr. Grace Shu