APA Democrats Strategize for ’08
September 3, 2007
LAS VEGAS — When attorney William Tong decided to seek election to Connecticut General Assembly’s 147th district in 2006, his political advisors suggested that he avoid mentioning his Chinese ancestry. “I think they already know,” the son of immigrant shopkeepers told them.
The fact that Tong, a Democrat and political novice, was able to become the first Asian American elected to the Connecticut Congress is remarkable, even if one doesn’t consider that he was running against a two-term incumbent Republican in one of the wealthiest electoral districts in the nation and one where Asian Americans represent less than three percent of the population.
“I won because I was able to connect my own immigrant experiences to common experiences of the larger community,” said Tong. “Asian Americans like myself have the ability to become cross-over candidates — and that says a lot about America.”
Tong was one of more than 100 Asian Pacific Islander American leaders gathered last week in Las Vegas for the 2007 American Majority Partnership Summit, hosted by the five constituency caucuses of the Democratic National Committee. This marked the first time in Democratic Party history that these groups — APIA, black, Hispanic, lesbian/gay and women — met to strategize separately and together about mobilizing voters for the upcoming presidential election. Tong joined four other APIA state and local elected officials in sharing winning campaign strategies.
“It’s all about knocking on doors to meet voters face-to-face and getting a good team around you,” said Jun Choi, who at age 34 became not only the first Asian American but also the youngest person ever elected mayor in Edison, N.J. He noted that by knocking on 13,000 doors and raising a record $170,000 for a New Jersey mayoral campaign, he was able to beat the three-term incumbent.
“Even a negative incident, such as the racial slurs made against me and other Asian Americans by local radio shock jocks during the campaign, can be turned to our advantage,” he added. Choi’s campaign manager taped the broadcast and sent copies to dozens of civil rights groups around the country, who rallied in support of Choi and forced the radio station to make a public apology.
Bel Leong-Hong, DNC APIA Caucus chair, noted that, despite racist incidents such as those experienced by Choi in New Jersey, the day when an APIA could be on a presidential ballot might not be far off. “The fact that we have an African American, a Latino and a woman are on the Democratic election indicates that Americans are ready for someone different,” she said. “In the mid-term election cycle, we proved that APAs could make a difference in close campaigns, and we made the DNC take notice of that.”
She added that in 2004, collective DNC contributions by APIA descent were counted for the first time — and totaled more than $6 million. “The key is that … we can show our collective strength and receive the kind of recognition and support our community deserves,” she said.
Earlier this month, the DNC announced its “50-State Election Protection Strategy,” which in the wake of voting irregularities in the 2000 election that cost the Democrats the presidency, seeks to fix confusing voting procedures on the local level that could jeopardize accurate vote-counting in the 2008 election.
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