ASIAN AMERICAN LEGAL DEFENSE FUND TO POLL 5,000 ASIAN AMERICAN
VOTERS
AND DOCUMENT VOTING PROBLEMS IN 11 STATES ON
ELECTION DAY
* * *
New York City...The Asian American Legal Defense and Education
Fund (AALDEF), a 40-year old national civil rights organization, will dispatch
over 500 attorneys, law students, and community volunteers to 11 states to
document voter problems on Election Day. AALDEF will also conduct a
nonpartisan multilingual exit poll in 12 languages to get a snapshot of Asian
American voting preferences, in light of the increase in newly-registered
voters.
Margaret Fung, AALDEF executive director, said: “We want to
ensure that all eligible Asian Americans can participate in the electoral
process and have their votes counted in the critical midterm elections.”
She said that AALDEF plans to poll 5,000 Asian American voters on
Election Day in 11 states with large Asian American populations: New
York, Virginia, Maryland, New Jersey, Massachusetts, Texas, Michigan,
Pennsylvania, Nevada, Georgia, Louisiana, and Washington, D.C.
POLL MONITORING
Responding to a wave of new state voter identification and proof
of citizenship laws, AALDEF will monitor over 100 poll sites to ensure
compliance with the Voting Rights Act and the Help America Vote Act. These
polling places are in areas with large numbers of newly-registered Asian
American voters; jurisdictions in which Asian-language assistance is provided;
and sites where Asian Americans have reported voting barriers or intimidation
in recent elections. Attorneys will check whether Asian-language voting
assistance has been provided (such as ballots, interpreters, signs and voting
materials) and whether provisional ballots are offered to voters whose names
are not in voter lists. Attorneys will report on whether voter identification
requirements are implemented in a non-discriminatory manner.
Jerry Vattamala, AALDEF Staff Attorney, said, “In the 2012
elections, Asian Americans had to overcome numerous obstacles to exercise their
right to vote. AALDEF volunteers identified mistranslated ballots, interpreter
shortages that led to Asian American voters being turned away, and poll workers
who made hostile and racist remarks about Asian American voters. AALDEF
will guard against the disenfranchisement of new citizens and limited English
proficient voters.”
MULTILINGUAL EXIT POLL
AALDEF will conduct a nonpartisan exit poll of Asian American
voters in 12 languages: Chinese, Korean, Vietnamese, Tagalog,
Khmer, Arabic, Bengali, Hindi, Punjabi, Urdu, Gujarati, and English.
Voters will be asked their preferences in the Gubernatorial, U.S. Senate, and
Congressional races, top reasons for their choices, party affiliations, whether
they are first-time voters, use of Asian-language voting assistance, and
specific problems encountered at the polls. The AALDEF Asian American
Exit Poll reveals vital information about Asian American voting patterns that
is often overlooked in mainstream voter surveys. In the 2012 Presidential
election, AALDEF polled 9,096 Asian American voters in 14 states--the largest
poll of its kind in the nation--and found that among Asian Americans polled:
• 79% were foreign-born naturalized U.S. citizens;
• 27% were first-time voters;
• 37% were limited English proficient;
• 57% were Democrats, 14% were Republicans, and 27% were not
enrolled in any political party;
• 77% voted for Barack Obama and 21% voted for Mitt Romney
AALDEF has conducted exit polls of Asian American voters in
every major election since 1988, noting the steadily increasing numbers of new
citizen and first-time voters.
Multilingual volunteers will be at poll sites to take complaints
from voters about election irregularities and other barriers to voting. Voters
can also report Election Day problems to AALDEF’s toll-free hotline at 800-966-5946,
or by e-mail at votingcomplaints@aaldef.org.
AALDEF is partnering with 59 national and local groups to
mobilize volunteer attorneys, law students, college students and community
activists on Election Day:
National Co-Sponsors
Alliance of South Asian American Labor
APIAVote
Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law
National Asian Pacific American Bar Association
National Coalition for Asian Pacific American Community
Development
Nat’l Korean Amer. Service & Educ. Consortium
National Queer Asian Pacific Islander Alliance
North American South Asian Bar Association
OCA Asian Pacific American Advocates
South Asian Americans Leading Together
Local Co-Sponsors
APIA Vote – Michigan
Asian American Society of Central Virginia
Boat People SOS Delaware Valley – PA
Boston College Asian Caucus
Center for Pan Asian Community Services – GA
Chhaya CDC - NY
Chinese Community Federation of Atlanta – GA
Chinese Progressive Association – MA
Coalition of Asian Pacific Americans of Virginia
Columbia University, School of Social Work
CUNY STARR Career Development Center
Hunter College/CUNY, Asian American Studies Program – NY
Korean American Civic Empowerment of NY/NJ
MinKwon Center for Community Action – NY
OCA Georgia Chapter
OCA Greater Houston Chapter
Princeton Asian American Students Assoc.
University of Maryland, College Park, Asian American Studies
Program
University of Massachusetts Boston, Asian American Studies
Program
Vietnamese American Young Leaders Association of New Orleans
Legal Co-Sponsors
Asian American Bar Association of Houston
Asian American Bar Association of New York
Asian American Lawyers Association of MA
Asian American Legal Advocacy Center of Georgia
Asian Bar Association of Las Vegas – NV
Asian Pacific American Bar Association of Wash. DC
Asian Pacific American Bar Association of PA
Asian Pacific American Lawyers Assoc. of NJ
Asian Pacific American Legal Resource Center – DC
Georgia Asian Pacific American Bar Association
Greater Boston Legal Services: Asian Outreach Unit
Korean Amer. Bar Assoc. of the Washington DC
Korean American Lawyers Assoc. of Greater NY
Louisiana Asian Pacific American Bar Association
Law School Co-Sponsors
American Univ.-Public Int.Office/APALSA/SALSA
U. Penn Law School - Public Interest Office/APALSA
Pace Law School, Public Interest Law Center – NY
Suffolk U. Law School, Rappaport Center for Law and Public
Service – MA
Boston College Law School APALSA
Brooklyn Law School APALSA
Cardozo Law APALSA
Columbia Law APALSA
Drexel University Law APALSA
Fordham Law APALSA
Rutgers Law APALSA
St. Johns Law APALSA
Temple Law APALSA
U. Michigan Law APALSA
University of Las Vegas APALSA
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protects and promotes the civil rights of Asian Americans.
By combining litigation, advocacy, education and
organizing. AALDEF works with Asian American communities
across the country to secure human rights for all.
華人前進會昨（廿七）日向社區匯報，墨水塊（Ink
Block）全食超市（Whole
Food)公佈了新店招聘進展，說明有651人遞表申請工作，157人獲選進入第二輪面試，另有105人的履歷已存入該公司檔案，待有職缺時，另行通知。
