FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: November 3, 2022
CONTACT: Virginia Lucy, media@napawf.org
WASHINGTON, D.C. – The National Asian Pacific American Women’s Forum (NAPAWF) is getting out the vote among Asian American women voters in the critical states of Florida, Georgia, and Texas for the upcoming midterm elections.
“Elections are opportunities for us to come together and make sure our voices are heard. Many races are won by razor-thin margins, underscoring the importance of every single vote,” said May Thach, NAPAWF’s Florida Organizing Manager. “Voting in every election matters because the decisions that affect the daily lives of Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) women are most often made at the local and state levels.”
Even with large and growing Asian American populations in the South, mainstream voter outreach does not historically reach out to the Asian American electorate, especially those who speak another language other than English. In response, NAPAWF is engaging voters in 10 Asian languages – Mandarin, Korean, Vietnamese, Tagalog, Bangla, Hindi, Tamil, Arabic, Burmese, and Urdu.
NAPAWF organizers and canvassers have reached out to nearly 50,000 voters through phone calls, door knocking, and personal and digital outreach to help Asian American communities realize the full potential of their political, economic, and social power.
“Current threats to our voting rights means we must work harder to ensure full access and participation in civic life. This is crucial to building our collective power so that we can make decisions that have a direct impact on our lives and communities,” said Othelia Jumapao, NAPAWF’s Florida Organizer.
NAPAWF is reaching first time voters, combating voting and election misinformation, and produced a GOTV video to engage AAPI women through their personal stories and experiences. They have published online voter guides to inform voters on how and when to vote in Florida, Georgia, and Texas, with an additional guide for Minnesota created by NAPAWF’s Minnesota chapter. The Florida guide is also available in Hindi, Urdu, and Vietnamese.
“Those in power often choose to ignore the Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) community, so we must speak out and use our voice by encouraging others to get to the polls,” said Georgia Rodriguez, NAPAWF’s Texas Organizer.
To learn more about NAPAWF’s voter outreach work, visit napawf.org/vote.
# # #
The National Asian Pacific American Women’s Forum (NAPAWF) is the only multi-issue, progressive, community organizing and policy advocacy organization for Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) women and girls in the U.S. NAPAWF’s mission is to build collective power so that all AAPI women and girls can have full agency over our lives, our families, and our communities.