Background
Most Asian American eligible voters live in California – the state is home to nearly a third of the entire U.S. Asian electorate. Since the last presidential election in 2020, not only has California’s overall Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) population increased from 6.7 million people to 7.3 million people (a near 10% increase), but the number of eligible voters has also grown at a similar pace from 4.1 million to 4.5 million. Additionally, the electorate share of AAPIs in California has steadily increased from 17% in 2020 and currently stands at 17.34%.
We at AAPI Data, in partnership with AAPI FORCE-EF and Asian American Futures, were interested in understanding this rapidly growing group of voters. In the year of 2024, what solutions do they support to some of the largest issues, like homelessness, in California? Beyond presidential voting preferences and party leanings, what policy priorities are they saying are most important? How are they saying political parties and community groups have engaged with them?
Our communities are not monolithic, and data is the first of many steps to unpacking the nuances between the ethnic groups, while still drawing insights key to understanding the larger needs and preferences of Asian Americans. We hope future iterations will have deeper assessments of Pacific Islander and more Southeast Asian groups.
This research was made possible due to the generous support of the Evelyn & Walter Haas Jr. Fund, The James Irvine Foundation, Asian American Power Network, and APIAVote.
*The 2024 California Asian American Voter Insights survey is based on a California-only sample of Asian American voters from the 2024 Asian American Voter Survey (AAVS). Read more about the survey methodology at the bottom of this page.
Key Findings
- 88% of California Asian American voters say they plan to vote for President, Congress and other offices this November. Almost three-quarters (73%) say they are absolutely certain they will vote this year.
- 85% of young voters (ages 18-34) said they are planning to vote, with 64% saying they are absolutely certain they will vote this year.
- Nearly half of Asian American voters in the state (46%) say they have not been contacted by either the Democratic or Republican parties, including 51% who say they have not been contacted by the Democratic Party, and 59% who say they have not been contacted by the Republican Party.
- Asian American voters in California named jobs and the economy (87%), health care (83%), and inflation (83%) as the top three issues that would get them to the polls on Election Day, regardless of how they felt about any particular candidate.
- Almost half of Asian American voters surveyed (49%) agree that local governments should shift spending from law enforcement to programs that address economic and social issues for minorities/disadvantaged communities.
- 86% favor programs designed to help Black people, and other people of color, including Asian Americans and Latinos, get better access to educational opportunities.
With a critical election just months away, data-informed insights of key voter blocs, like Asian Americans, will play a crucial role for political campaigns and nonpartisan organizations seeking to elevate and engage our communities in November. The findings from this survey reflect key trends and insights from national data on Asian American voters: our communities are ready to be civically engaged and mobilized — we’re just waiting for the call.
Karthick Ramakrishnan, Executive Director and Founder, AAPI Data
Survey Methodology
The survey of 1,253 Asian American voters in California was conducted using mixed modes, self-administered responses via an online panel and telephone interviews of respondents selected from a classified list of Asian American voters for the six largest ethnic groups (Chinese, Indian, Filipino, Korean, Vietnamese, and Japanese) — which collectively represent 85% of the eligible voter population of Asian Americans in California. Surveys were offered in English, Mandarin, Cantonese, Korean, and Vietnamese and were fielded from April 4 to May 26, 2024. Respondents qualified for the survey if they indicated on a screener questionnaire that they were currently registered to vote at their present address.
The data were weighted using a post-stratification ranking method based on: 1) key demographic factors (age, education, gender, and nativity) by Asian ethnicity, and 2) the party distribution of registered voters by Asian ethnicity. The survey has a 4% margin of error, which incorporates sample size, the design effect of the study, and the survey’s post-stratification weights.