Biden losing support among AAPI voters, pre-debate survey shows
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Actress Lucy Liu speaks during an event with President Joe Biden celebrating Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander Heritage Month in the Rose Garden of the White House on May 13, 2024. Photo: Win McNamee/Getty Images
President Biden is losing support among Asian American voters, one of the nation's fastest-growing voting blocs, a new survey finds.
Why it matters: The drop in support is yet another warning sign for Biden, who is losing support from another coalition of voter just months before his expected rematch with Donald Trump.
- It also comes after his disastrous debate performance, which has sparked calls from some Democrats to step aside in the election, though this latest survey was conducted before the debate.
By the numbers: Less than half of Asian American voters surveyed (46%) say they're likely to vote for Biden — an eight percentage point decrease from the last presidential election year, the Asian American Voter Survey finds.
- 31% say they'll likely vote for Trump (compared to 30% in 2020).
- 5% say they'll likely vote for someone else (up from 1% in 2020).
The intrigue: 43% said they had a favorable opinion of Vice President Kamala Harris, who is scheduled to deliver a keynote address at a presidential town hall hosted by APIAVote in Philadelphia this weekend.
Yes, but: Asian American voters prefer Democratic candidates over Republicans for the House (51% vs. 30%) and Senate (50% vs. 30%).
- The survey was conducted by Asian and Pacific Islander American Vote (APIAVote), AAPI Data, Asian Americans Advancing Justice - AAJC, and AARP.
Zoom in: Jobs and the economy topped this list (86%) as the most important issue for Asian Americans, followed by inflation (85%), healthcare (85%), crime (80%), and education (80%).
- Immigration just barely made the top ten.
Between the lines: Biden's popularity among Asian Americans and Latinos is dropping even as they remain firmly behind Democrats overall.
- That shows that the Biden brand has suffered while Asian Americans and Latinos show support for Democratic policies around climate change and abortion.
What they're saying: "Even before the June presidential debate, President Biden had lost confidence among many Asian American voters," Karthick Ramakrishnan, executive director of AAPI Data, tells Axios.
- Much of the decline appears to be related to inflation and the economy, Ramakrishnan said.
- "This diminished enthusiasm among Asian American Democrats and Independents could spell trouble for Biden in critical swing states like Pennsylvania, Michigan, Arizona, and Georgia."
- APIA Vote Executive Director Christine Chen tells Axios the survey is a warning to the Biden campaign about a lack of motivation among Asian American voters.
Methodology: The 2024 Asian American Voter Survey (AAVS) survey was conducted April 4-May 26 by APIAVote, AAPI Data, Asian Americans Advancing Justice and AARP. This poll is based on a nationally representative probability sample of 2,479 Asian American and Pacific Islander adults age 18 or older.
- It 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).
- The margin of sampling error is ± 2.7 percentage points at the 95% confidence level.
