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Asian Americans in politics

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Asian Americans represent a growing share of the national population and of the electorate.[1] The lower political participation of Asian Americans has been raised as a concern, especially as it relates to their influence on politics in the United States.[2][3] Asian Americans were once a strong constituency for Republicans. In 1992, George H.W. Bush won 55% of Asian voters.[4] In the 21st century, Asian Americans have become a key Democratic Party constituency.[5][6] As of 2023, 62% of Asian American registered voters identify with or lean towards the Democratic Party, in contrast to 34% who identify with or lean towards the Republicans.[7]

Officeholders

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Elected national officials

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Vice president

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Name Image Term Ethnicity State Party Offices held
Kamala Harris
(1964–)
2021–present Indian American California Democratic Harris, who is half Indian American,[8] became the US' first female vice president, the highest-ranking female elected official in U.S. history, and the first African-American and first Asian-American vice president.[9][10]

Congress

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Senate

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(Note: Senators are organized first in chronological order according to their first term in office, then second in alphabetical order according to their surname.)

Senator Asian and/or
Pacific Islander ethnicity
Party State Tenure Notes
Term start Term end Length of service
Sen. Fong Hiram Fong
(1906–2004)
Chinese[S 1] Republican Hawaii August 21, 1959 January 3, 1977 17 years, 135 days Retired
Sen. Inouye Daniel Inouye
(1924–2012)
Japanese[S 2] Democratic Hawaii January 3, 1963 December 17, 2012 49 years, 349 days Died in office
S. I. Hayakawa
(1906–1992)
Japanese Republican California January 2, 1977 January 3, 1983 6 years, 1 day Retired
Sen. Matsunaga Spark Matsunaga
(1916–1990)
Japanese Democratic Hawaii January 3, 1977 April 15, 1990 13 years, 102 days Died in office
Sen. Akaka Daniel Akaka
(1924–2018)
Hawaiian,
Chinese[S 3]
Democratic Hawaii May 16, 1990 January 3, 2013 22 years, 232 days Initially appointed; later re-elected
Retired
Sen. Ensign John Ensign
(born 1958)
Filipino[S 4] Republican Nevada January 3, 2001 May 3, 2011 10 years, 120 days Resigned
Sen. Hirono Mazie Hirono
(born 1947)
Japanese[S 5] Democratic Hawaii January 3, 2013 Incumbent 11 years, 330 days
Sen. Duckworth Tammy Duckworth
(born 1968)
Thai,
Chinese[S 6]
Democratic Illinois January 3, 2017 Incumbent 7 years, 330 days
Sen. Harris Kamala Harris
(born 1964)
Indian[S 7] Democratic California January 3, 2017 January 18, 2021 4 years, 15 days Resigned to become Vice President
  1. ^ First American of Chinese ancestry elected to Congress
  2. ^ First Japanese American elected to the Senate
  3. ^ First Native Hawaiian to serve in the Senate
  4. ^ First person of Filipino ancestry elected to the Senate
  5. ^ First Asian-American woman elected to the Senate
  6. ^ First Thai American elected to the Senate
  7. ^ First person of South Asian ancestry elected to the Senate; together with Pramila Jayapal, first Indian-American woman elected to Congress

House of Representatives

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(Note: Representatives are organized first in chronological order according to their first term in office, then second in alphabetical order according to their surname.)

Representative Asian and/or
Pacific Islander ethnicity
Party State Tenure Notes
Term start Term end Length of service
Rep. Saund Dalip Singh Saund
(1899–1973)
Indian[H 1] Democratic California January 3, 1957 January 3, 1963 6 years, 0 days Lost reelection
Rep. Inouye Daniel Inouye
(1924–2012)
Japanese[H 2] Democratic Hawaii August 21, 1959 January 3, 1963 3 years, 135 days Retired to run successfully for U.S. Senate
Rep. Matsunaga Spark Matsunaga
(1916–1990)
Japanese Democratic Hawaii January 3, 1963 January 3, 1977 14 years, 0 days Retired to run successfully for U.S. Senate
Rep. Mink Patsy Mink
(1927–2002)
Japanese[H 3] Democratic Hawaii January 3, 1965 January 3, 1977 12 years, 0 days Retired to run unsuccessfully for U.S. Senate
September 22, 1990 September 28, 2002 12 years, 6 days Died in office
Rep. Mineta Norman Mineta
(1931–2022)
Japanese Democratic California January 3, 1975 October 10, 1995 20 years, 280 days Resigned
Later served as Secretary of Commerce and Secretary of Transportation
Rep. Akaka Daniel Akaka
(1924–2018)
Chinese Democratic Hawaii January 3, 1977 May 16, 1990 13 years, 133 days Resigned after being appointed to the U.S. Senate
Rep. Matsui Bob Matsui
(1941–2005)
Japanese Democratic California January 3, 1979 January 1, 2005 25 years, 364 days Died in office
Rep. Dymally Mervyn Dymally
(1926–2012)
Indian[H 4] Democratic California January 3, 1981 January 3, 1993 12 years, 0 days Retired
Rep. Saiki Pat Saiki
(born 1930)
Japanese Republican Hawaii January 3, 1987 January 3, 1991 4 years, 0 days Retired to run unsuccessfully for U.S. Senate
Rep. Kim Jay Kim
(born 1939)
Korean[H 5] Republican California January 3, 1993 January 3, 1999 6 years, 0 days Lost renomination
Rep. Scott Bobby Scott
(born 1947)
Filipino[H 6] Democratic Virginia January 3, 1993 Incumbent 31 years, 330 days
Rep. Ensign John Ensign
(born 1958)
Filipino Republican Nevada January 3, 1995 January 3, 1999 4 years, 0 days Retired to run unsuccessfully for U.S. Senate
Later elected to the U.S. Senate from Nevada
Rep. Wu David Wu
(born 1955)
Taiwanese[H 7] Democratic Oregon January 3, 1999 August 3, 2011 12 years, 212 days Resigned
Rep. Honda Mike Honda
(born 1941)
Japanese Democratic California January 3, 2001 January 3, 2017 16 years, 0 days Lost reelection
Rep. Jindal Bobby Jindal
(born 1971)
Indian Republican Louisiana January 3, 2005 January 14, 2008 3 years, 11 days Resigned to run successfully for Governor
Rep. Matsui Doris Matsui
(born 1944)
Japanese Democratic California March 8, 2005 Incumbent 19 years, 265 days Elected to succeed late husband
Rep. Hirono Mazie Hirono
(born 1947)
Japanese Democratic Hawaii January 3, 2007 January 3, 2013 6 years, 0 days Retired to run successfully for U.S. Senate
Rep. Austria Steve Austria
(born 1958)
Filipino Republican Ohio January 3, 2009 January 3, 2013 4 years, 0 days Retired following decennial redistricting
Rep. Cao Joseph Cao
(born 1967)
Vietnamese[H 8] Republican Louisiana January 3, 2009 January 3, 2011 2 years, 0 days Lost reelection
Rep. Chu Judy Chu
(born 1953)
Chinese[H 9] Democratic California July 14, 2009 Incumbent 15 years, 137 days
Rep. Djou Charles Djou
(born 1970)
Thai,
Chinese[H 10]
Republican Hawaii May 22, 2010 January 3, 2011 226 days Lost reelection
Rep. Clarke Hansen Clarke
(born 1957)
Bangladeshi[H 11] Democratic Michigan January 3, 2011 January 3, 2013 2 years, 0 days Lost renomination following decennial redistricting
Rep. Hanabusa Colleen Hanabusa
(born 1951)
Japanese Democratic Hawaii January 3, 2011 January 3, 2015 4 years, 0 days Retired to run unsuccessfully for U.S. Senate
November 14, 2016 January 3, 2019 2 years, 50 days Retired to run unsuccessfully for Governor
Rep. Bera Ami Bera
(born 1965)
Indian Democratic California January 3, 2013 Incumbent 11 years, 330 days
Rep. Duckworth Tammy Duckworth
(born 1968)
Thai,
Chinese[H 12]
Democratic Illinois January 3, 2013 January 3, 2017 4 years, 0 days Retired to run successfully for U.S. Senate
Rep. Meng Grace Meng
(born 1975)
Taiwanese[H 13] Democratic New York January 3, 2013 Incumbent 11 years, 330 days
Rep. Takano Mark Takano
(born 1960)
Japanese[H 14] Democratic California January 3, 2013 Incumbent 11 years, 330 days
Rep. Lieu Ted Lieu
(born 1969)
Taiwanese Democratic California January 3, 2015 Incumbent 9 years, 330 days
Rep. Takai Mark Takai
(1967–2016)
Japanese Democratic Hawaii January 3, 2015 July 20, 2016 1 year, 199 days Died in office
Rep. Jayapal Pramila Jayapal
(born 1965)
Indian[H 15] Democratic Washington January 3, 2017 Incumbent 7 years, 330 days
Rep. Khanna Ro Khanna
(born 1976)
Indian Democratic California January 3, 2017 Incumbent 7 years, 330 days
Rep. Krishnamoorthi Raja Krishnamoorthi
(born 1973)
Indian Democratic Illinois January 3, 2017 Incumbent 7 years, 330 days
Rep. Murphy Stephanie Murphy
(born 1978)
Vietnamese[H 16] Democratic Florida January 3, 2017 January 3, 2023 6 years, 0 days Retired
TJ Cox
(born 1963)
Filipino,
Chinese
Democratic California January 3, 2019 January 3, 2021 2 years, 0 days Lost reelection
Andy Kim
(born 1982)
Korean Democratic New Jersey January 3, 2019 Incumbent 5 years, 330 days
Young Kim
(born 1962)
Korean[H 17] Republican California January 3, 2021 Incumbent 3 years, 330 days
Michelle Steel
(born 1955)
Korean[H 17] Republican California January 3, 2021 Incumbent 3 years, 330 days
Marilyn Strickland
(born 1962)
Korean[H 17] Democratic Washington January 3, 2021 Incumbent 3 years, 330 days
Shri Thanedar
(born 1955)
Indian Democratic Michigan January 3, 2023 Incumbent 1 year, 330 days
Jill Tokuda
(born 1976)
Japanese Democratic Hawaii January 3, 2023 Incumbent 1 year, 330 days
Vince Fong
(born 1979)
Chinese Republican California June 3, 2024 Incumbent 178 days
  1. ^ First AAPI person elected to Congress as a non-delegate, and also first Indian American elected to Congress
  2. ^ First Japanese American elected to Congress
  3. ^ First Asian-American woman elected to Congress
  4. ^ First (and so far only) Dougla elected to Congress
  5. ^ First Korean American elected to Congress
  6. ^ First American-born Filipino elected to Congress
  7. ^ First Taiwanese American elected to Congress
  8. ^ First Vietnamese American elected to Congress
  9. ^ First Chinese-American woman elected to Congress
  10. ^ First Thai American elected to Congress
  11. ^ First person of Bangladeshi ancestry elected to Congress
  12. ^ First Thai-American woman elected to Congress
  13. ^ First Taiwanese-American woman elected to Congress
  14. ^ First openly gay person of AAPI ancestry elected to Congress
  15. ^ Together with Kamala Harris, first Indian-American woman elected to Congress
  16. ^ First Vietnamese-American woman elected to Congress
  17. ^ a b c Reps. Kim, Steel and Strickland are collectively the first Korean-American women elected to Congress

State and local government

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Governors

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Name Image Term Ethnicity State Party Offices held
George Ariyoshi
(1926–)
1974–1986 Japanese American Hawaii Democratic First American of Asian descent to be elected governor of a state of the United States.[11] He continues to hold the record as the longest-serving state governor in Hawaii.
Ben Cayetano
(1939–)
1994–2002 Filipino American Hawaii Democratic First Filipino American to serve as a state governor in the United States.[12]
Gary Locke
(1950–)
1997–2005 Chinese American Washington Democratic First Chinese American to be elected governor in United States history and the first Asian American governor in the continental United States.[13]
Bobby Jindal
(1971–)
2008–2016 Indian American Louisiana Republican Served in various executive positions in Louisiana and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services before being elected to Congress in 2004, and finally winning the Louisiana gubernatorial elections in 2007 (thereby becoming the first non-white governor of Louisiana since Reconstruction), the first elected Indian American governor in U.S. history,[14] as well as the second Asian American governor to serve in the continental United States.
Nikki Haley
(1972–)
2011–2017 Indian American South Carolina Republican Served as the 116th Governor of South Carolina from 2011 to 2017. Haley previously represented Lexington County in the South Carolina House of Representatives from 2005 to 2010.[15] She is the first Sikh American governor in the United States,[16] first female governor of South Carolina,[16] second elected Indian American governor in U.S. history,[17] as well as the third Asian American governor to serve in the continental United States. Nikki Haley's election was not the only first for Asian Americans to occur during the 2010 election cycle.
David Ige
(1957–)
2014–2022 Japanese American Hawaii Democratic Served as the 8th governor of Hawaii from 2014 to 2022. First person of Okinawan descent to hold office in the U.S.[18]

Statewide offices

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Name Image Term Ethnicity State Party Offices held
James Kealoha
(1908–1983)
1959–1962 Chinese-American Hawaii Republican Lieutenant Governor of Hawaii
Andrew T. F. Ing
(1919–1999)
1966 Chinese-American Hawaii Democratic

Lieutenant Governor of Hawaii

March Fong Eu
(1922–2017)
1975–1994 Chinese-American California Democratic Secretary of State of California
Nelson Doi
(1922–2015)
1974–1978 Japanese-American Hawaii Democratic

Lieutenant Governor of Hawaii

Jean Sadako King
(1925–2013)
1978–1982 Japanese-American Hawaii Democratic

Lieutenant Governor of Hawaii

S. B. Woo
(1937–)
1985–1989 Chinese-American Delaware Democratic Lieutenant Governor of Delaware 1985 – 1989.
Cheryl Lau
(1944–)
1995–1999 Chinese-American Nevada Republican Nevada Secretary of State
Mazie Hirono
(1947–)
1994–2002 Japanese American Hawaii Democratic Lieutenant Governor of Hawaii
Matt Fong
(1953–2011)
1995–1999 Chinese-American California Republican California State Treasurer
Duke Aiona
(1955–)
2002–2010 Chinese American Hawaii Republican Served as Lieutenant Governor from 2002 to 2010.
Alex Sink
(1948–)
2007–2011 Thai-American Florida Democratic Served as Chief Financial Officer of Florida from 2007 to 2011.
Kamala Harris
(1964–)
2011–2017 Indian-American California Democratic Harris, who is half Indian-American,[8] became the first female, first Jamaican American, and first Asian-American state attorney general in the United States.[19]
Shan Tsutsui
(1971–)
2012–2018 Japanese-American Hawaii Democratic Lieutenant Governor of Hawaii
Sean Reyes
(1971–)
2013–present Filipino-American
Japanese American
Utah Republican Attorney General of Utah
Doug Chin
(1966–)
2015–2018 Chinese-American Hawaii Democratic Served as Lieutenant Governor of Hawaii in 2018 and as Hawaii Attorney General from 2015 – 2018.
John Chiang
(1962–)
2015–2019 Taiwanese-American California Democratic Served as California State Treasurer from 2015 to 2019.
Fiona Ma
(1966–)
2019–present Chinese-American California Democratic California State Treasurer from 2019–present.
Betty Yee
(1957–)
2015–present Chinese-American California Democratic Serving as California State Controller since 2015.
William Tong
(1973–)
2019–present Chinese-American Connecticut Democratic Serving as Connecticut Attorney General since 2019.
Kimberly Yee
(1974–)
2019–present Chinese-American Arizona Republican Serving as Arizona State Treasurer since 2019.
Rob Bonta
(1972–)
2021–present Filipino-American California Democratic Attorney General of California since 2021.
Steve Hobbs
(1970–)
2021–present Japanese-American Washington Democratic Secretary of State of Washington since 2021.
Sylvia Luke
(1967–)
2022–present Korean-American Hawaii Democratic Lieutenant Governor of Hawaii since 2022. First Korean-American politician elected to a statewide office.[20]
Aruna Miller
(1964–)
2023–present Indian American Maryland Democratic Lieutenant Governor of Maryland since 2023. First South Asian lieutenant governor in the United States.
Susan C. Lee
(1954–)
2023–present Chinese American Maryland Democratic Secretary of State of Maryland
Portia Wu
(1970–)
2023–present Taiwanese American Maryland Secretary of Labor of Maryland

State Legislative offices

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Name Image Term Ethnicity State Party Offices held
Kazuhisa Abe
(1914–1996)
1959–1966 Japanese-American Hawaii Democratic Served in the Hawaii State Senate, including as Senate President in 1965–1966 (after Nelson Doi).
Noboru Miyake
(1896–1988)
1959–1966 Japanese-American Hawaii Republican Served in the Hawaii State Senate.
Steere Noda
(1892–1986)
1959–1962 Japanese-American Hawaii Democratic Served in the Hawaii State Senate.
Sakae Takahashi
(1919–2001)
1959–1974 Japanese-American Hawaii Democratic Served in the Hawaii State Senate.
John T. Ushijima
(1924–2006)
1959–1982 Japanese-American Hawaii Democratic Served in the Hawaii State Senate.
Nadao Yoshinaga
(1919–2009)
1959–1974 Japanese-American Hawaii Democratic Served in the Hawaii State Senate.
Tadao Beppu
(1919–1993)
1959–1976 Japanese-American Hawaii Democratic Served in the Hawaii House of Representatives, including as Speaker of the House from 1968 to 1974. Also served as secretary of the Hawaii Constitutional Convention of 1968.
James H. Wakatsuki
(1929–1992)
1959–1980 Japanese-American Hawaii Democratic Served in the Hawaii House of Representatives, including as Speaker of the House from 1975 to 1980. Later served as a Hawaii Supreme Court justice.
Yoshito Takamine
(1924–2015)
1959–1984 Japanese-American Hawaii Democratic Served in the Hawaii House of Representatives.
Robert Fukuda
(1922–2013)
1959–1962 Japanese-American Hawaii Republican Served in the Hawaii House of Representatives. Later served as U.S. Attorney in Hawaii from 1969 to 1973.
Alfred H. Song
(1919–2004)
1963–1978 Korean-American California Democratic Served in the California State Assembly and California State Senate.
Edmond Gong
(1930–2015)
1966–1972 Chinese-American Florida Democratic Served in the Florida House of Representatives. First Asian American legislator in Florida.
March Fong Eu
(1922–2017)
1967–1974 Chinese-American California Democratic Served in the California State Assembly.
Tom Hom
(1927–)
1968–1970 Chinese-American California Republican Served in the California State Assembly.
Paul Bannai
(1920–2019)
1973–1980 Japanese-American California Republican Served in the California State Assembly.
John Eng
(1942–)
1973–1983 Hong Kong American Washington Democratic First Asian American legislator in Washington state.
Thelma Buchholdt
(1934–2007)
1975–1983 Filipino-American Alaska Democratic Served in the Alaska House of Representatives. First Filipino American woman legislator in the United States.
S. Floyd Mori
(1939–)
1975–1980 Japanese-American California Democratic Served in the California State Assembly.
Nao Takasugi
(1922–2009)
1992–1998 Japanese-American California Republican Served in the California State Assembly.
David Valderrama
(1933–)
1991–2003 Filipino-American Maryland Democratic Served in the Maryland House of Delegates from 1991 to 2003. First Filipino-American elected to a state legislature in the contiguous United States.
John Lim
(1935–)
1993–2001, 2005-2009 Korean American Oregon Republican Served in the Oregon State Senate from 1993 to 2001. Served in the Oregon House of Representatives from 2005 to 2009. While in the Oregon State Senate, he served as Majority Leader.
Nimi McConigley 1994–1996 Indian-American Wyoming Republican Served in the Wyoming House of Representatives from 1994 to 1996. First Indian born person to be elected to any state legislature.
Mike Honda
(1941–)
1996–2000 Japanese-American California Democratic Served in the California State Assembly.
John Pippy
(1970–)
1997–2003, 2003-2012 Thai-American Pennsylvania Republican Served in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives from 1997 to 2003 before being elected to the Pennsylvania State Senate.
George Nakano
(1935–)
1998–2004 Japanese-American California Democratic Served in the California State Assembly.
Blake Oshiro
(1970–)
2001–2011 Okinawan American Hawaii Democratic Served in the Hawaii House of Representatives from 2001 to 2011. Oshiro was majority leader during his tenure.
Saghir Tahir
(1945–2013)
2001–2011 Pakistani American New Hampshire Republican Served in the New Hampshire House of Representatives from 2001 to 2011. First Pakistan native to be elected to any state legislature, and first Muslim American elected to any political office in the United States.
Shirley Horton
(1952–)
2002–2008 Japanese American California Republican Served in the California State Assembly.
Nikki Haley
(1972–)
2005–2011 Indian American South Carolina Republican Serving in the South Carolina House of Representatives from 2005 to 2011. First Indian American to be elected to the South Carolina legislature. She would later be elected governor.
Hubert Vo
(1956–)
2005–present Vietnamese-American Texas Democratic Serving in the Texas House of Representatives since 2005. First Vietnamese American to be elected to the Texas Legislature.
Kris Valderrama
(1970–)
2007–present Filipino American Maryland Democratic Served in the Maryland House of Delegates
Saqib Ali
(1971–)
2007–2011 Pakistani American
Indian American
Maryland Democratic Served in the Maryland House of Delegates
Tony Fulton
(1972–)
2007–2013 Filipino American Nebraska Republican Served in the Nebraska Legislature from 2007 to 2013. Currently the tax commissioner of Nebraska.
Sharon Har 2007–2022 Korean American Hawaii Democratic Served in the Hawaii House of Representatives.
Scott Kawasaki
(1975–)
2007–2019, 2019–present Japanese American Alaska Democratic Served in the Alaska House of Representatives from 2007 to 2019 before being elected to the Alaska State Senate in 2019.
Angie Chen Button
(1954–)
2009–present Chinese-American Texas Republican Serving in the Texas House of Representatives since 2009.
Tony Hwang
(1964–)
2009–2015, 2015–present Taiwanese American Connecticut Republican Served in the Connecticut House of Representatives from 2009 to 2015 before being elected to the Connecticut State Senate where he currently serves.
Mark Keam
(1966–)
2010–2022 Korean American Virginia Democratic Served in the Virginia House of Delegates
Aruna Miller
(1964–)
2010–2019 Indian American Maryland Democratic Served in the Maryland House of Delegates. First Indian American to be elected to the Maryland General Assembly. She would later be elected lieutenant governor.
B. J. Pak
(1980–)
2011–2017 Korean American Georgia Republican Served in the Georgia House of Representatives from 2011 to 2017. In 2017 he was nominated and confirmed as United States Attorney for the Northern District of Georgia
Phil Ting
(1969–)
2012-present Chinese-American California Democratic Serving in the California State Assembly since 2012.
Ron Kim
(1979–)
2013–present Korean American New York Democratic Serving in the New York State Assembly
Brian Shiozawa 2013–2017 Japanese American Utah Republican Served in the Utah State Senate
Gene Wu
(1978–)
2013–present Chinese-American Texas Democratic Serving in the Texas House of Representatives since 2013.
Ling Ling Chang
(1976–)
2014–2016, 2018-2020 Taiwanese-American California Republican From 2014 to 2016 Chang served in the California State Assembly. In 2016 she ran for a seat in the California State Senate and lost, but the incumbent was recalled, and she won the special election for the remainder of his term.
Janet Nguyen
(1976–)
2014–2018, 2020–2022, 2022–present Vietnamese-American California Republican From 2014 to 2018 Nguyen served in the California State Senate making her the first Vietnamese American to serve in any state senate. After narrowly losing reelection, she ran for and won a seat in the California State Assembly in 2020. In 2022 Nguyen ran again for the California State Senate and won.
Ervin Yen 2014–2018 Taiwanese-American Oklahoma Republican Served in the Oklahoma Senate from 2014 to 2018.
Roxanne Persaud 2015-2015, 2015–present Indian American New York Democratic Served in the New York State Assembly from January 2015-November 2015. Serving in the New York Senate since 2015.
Mark S. Chang
(1978–)
2015–present Korean-American Maryland Democratic Serving in the Maryland House of Delegates since 2015.
Jay Jalisi
(1965–)
2015–2023 Pakistani American Maryland Democratic Served in the Maryland House of Delegates from 2015 to 2023.
Clarence Lam
(1980–)
2015–2019, 2019–present Chinese-American Maryland Democratic Served in the Maryland House of Delegates from 2015 to 2019 before being elected to the Maryland Senate in 2019, where he is currently.
David Moon
(1979–)
2015–present Korean-American Maryland Democratic Serving in the Maryland House of Delegates since 2015, and as Majority Leader since 2023.
Phillip Chen
(1978–)
2016–present Chinese-American California Republican Serving in the California State Assembly since 2016.
Steven Choi
(1944–)
2016–2022 Korean American California Republican Member of the California State Assembly
Vince Fong
(1979–)
2016–2024 Chinese-American California Republican Served in the California State Assembly from 2016 until 2024.
Todd Gloria
(1978–)
2016–2020 Filipino American California Democratic House Majority Whip and member of the California State Assembly
Manka Dhingra
(1973 or 1974–)
2017–present Indian-American Washington Democratic Serving in the Washington State Senate since 2017.
Bee Nguyen
(1978–)
2017–present Vietnamese-American Georgia Democratic Serving in the Georgia House of Representatives since 2017. First Vietnamese American in the Georgia House of Representatives.
Vandana Slatter
(1981–)
2017–present Indian-American Washington Democratic Serving in the Washington State House since 2017.
Lei Learmont 2017–2018 Japanese-American Hawaii Democratic Serving in the Hawaii House of Representatives from 2017 to 2018.
Dean Tran
(1978–)
2017–2021 Vietnamese-American Massachusetts Republican Served in the Massachusetts Senate, first Vietnamese American to hold elected office in Massachusetts.
Tyler Diep 2018–2020 Vietnamese-American California Republican Served in the California State Assembly.
Val Okimoto 2018–2022 Japanese-American Filipino American Hawaii Republican Served in the Hawaii House of Representatives. Minority leader from 2021-2022.
Daniel Pae
(1995–)
2018–present Korean-American Oklahoma Republican Serving in the Oklahoma House of Representatives.
Saud Anwar
(1962–)
2019–present Pakistani American Connecticut Democratic Serving in the Connecticut State Senate.
Harry Bhandari
(1977–)
2019–present Nepalese-American Maryland Democratic Serving in the Maryland House of Delegates.
Lily Qi
(1963–)
2019–present Chinese-American Maryland Democratic Serving in the Maryland House of Delegates
Kaohly Her
(1978–)
2019–present Hmong-American Minnesota Democratic Serving in the Minnesota House of Representatives.
Tina Maharath
(1978–)
2019–present Laotian-American Ohio Democratic Serving in the Ohio State Senate. First Laotian American elected to public office.
Mike Giallombardo
(1982-)
2020-present Korean-American Florida Republican Serving in the Florida House of Representatives since 2020.
Charlice Byrd
(1951-)
2021-present Chinese-American Georgia Republican Serving in the Georgia house of representatives
Francesca Hong
(1988–)
2021–present Korean-American Wisconsin Democratic Serving the 76th district of the Wisconsin State Assembly since January 4, 2021. She is the first Asian-American state legislator to serve in the Wisconsin Legislature.
Khanh Pham
(1978–)
2021–present Vietnamese-American Oregon Democratic Serving the 46th district of the Oregon House of Representatives since January 11, 2021. She is the first Vietnamese-American to serve in the Oregon Legislative Assembly.
Kimberly Fiorello
(1975-)
2021-2023 Korean-American Connecticut Republican Serving in the Connecticut house of representatives
Quang Nguyen
(1962-)
2021-present Vietnamese-American Arizona Republican Serving in the Arizona House of Representatives since 2021.
Shri Thanedar
(1955-)
2021-2023 Indian American Michigan Democratic Serving in the Michigan House of Representatives from 2021 to 2023.
Rose Martinez

(born 1958)

2023–present Filipino American Hawaii Democratic Serving in the Hawaii House of Representatives since 2023.
Tyson Miyake 2023–present Japanese-American Hawaii Democratic Serving in the Hawaii House of Representatives since 2023.
Trish La Chica 2023–present Filipino American Hawaii Democratic Serving in the Hawaii House of Representatives since 2023.
Lester Chang
(1973–)
2023–present Chinese-American New York Republican Serving in the New York State Assembly since 2023.
Saira Draper 2023–present Pakistani American Georgia Democratic Serving in the Georgia House of Representatives since 2023.
Long Tran 2023–present Vietnamese-American Georgia Democratic Serving in the Georgia House of Representatives since 2023.
Justin Jones
(1995–)
2023–present Filipino American Tennessee Democratic Served in the Tennessee House of Representatives from January 10, 2023 to April 6, 2023.
Nabilah Islam
(1989–)
2023-present Bangladeshi-American Georgia Democratic Serving in the Georgia House of Representatives since 2023.
Tri Ta
(1973–)
2023–present Vietnamese-American California Republican Serving in the California State Assembly since 2023.
Chao Wu
(1976 or 1977–)
2023–present Chinese-American Maryland Democratic Serving in the Maryland House of Delegates since 2023.
May Mizuno 2024–present Filipino-American Hawaii Democratic Serving in the Hawaii House of Representatives since 2024.

Mayors

[edit]
Name Image Term Ethnicity State Party Offices held
Kinjiro Matsudaira
(1885–1963)
1927, 1943 Japanese American Maryland Mayor of Edmonston, Maryland, elected in 1927 and 1943[21]
James Kanno
(1925–2017)
1957–1962 Japanese American California First mayor of Fountain Valley, California[22]
Norman Mineta
(1931–2022)
1971–1975 Japanese American California Democratic Served as mayor of San Jose, California.[23]
Sak Yamamoto
(1914–1997)
1973–1974, 1977–1979 Japanese American California Mayor of Carson, California[24]
Eduardo Malapit
(1933–2007)
1974–1982 Filipino American Hawaii Independent Mayor of Kauai County, Hawaii
S. Floyd Mori
(1939–)
1974–1975 Japanese American California Democratic Mayor of Pleasanton, California[25]
Eunice Sato
(1921–2021)
1980–1982 Japanese American California Republican Mayor of Long Beach, California
Nao Takasugi
(1922–2009)
1982–1992 Japanese American California Republican Mayor of Oxnard, California elected in 1982 and re-elected four times[26]
Judy Chu
(1953–)
1989–1994 Chinese American California Democratic Three term mayor of Monterey Park, California starting in 1989
Lorraine Inouye
(1940–)
1990–1992 Filipino American Hawaii Independent Mayor of Hawaii County, Hawaii
Carol Liu 1992– 2000 Chinese American California Democratic Mayor of La Cañada Flintridge
Stephen K. Yamashiro
(1941–2011)
1992–2000 Japanese American Hawaii Independent Mayor of Hawaii County, Hawaii
Jimmie R. Yee
(1934–)
1999–2000 Chinese American California Democratic Mayor of Sacramento, California[27]
Alan Nakanishi
(1940–)
2000–2001, 2012–2013, 2017–2018, 2020–2021 Japanese American California Republican Mayor of Lodi, California for four two-year terms[28]
Harry Kim
(1939–)
2000–2008, 2016–2020 Korean American Hawaii Independent Mayor of Hawaii County, Hawaii
Alan Arakawa
(1951–)
2003–2007, 2011–2019 Japanese American Hawaii Independent Mayor of Maui County, Hawaii
Otto Lee
2005–2007 Chinese American California Democratic Mayor of Sunnyvale, California
Ken Miyagishima
(1963–)
2007–2023 Japanese American New Mexico Democratic Four-term mayor of Las Cruces, New Mexico first elected in 2007[29]
Sukhee Kang
(1952–)
2008–2012 Korean American California Democratic Mayor of Irvine, California[30]
Evan Low 2009–2015 Chinese American California Democratic Mayor of Campbell, California
Marilyn Strickland 2010–2018 Korean American Washington Democratic Mayor of Tacoma, Washington
Ed Lee
(1952–2017)
2011–2017 Chinese American California Democratic Served as first Asian American mayor of San Francisco until his death in 2017.[31]
Jean Quan
(1949–)
2011–2015 Chinese American California Democratic Mayor of Oakland, California 2011–2015[32]
Steven Choi
(1944–)
2012–2016 Korean American California Republican Mayor of Irvine, California
Bao Nguyen
(1980–)
2014–2016 Vietnamese American California Democratic Mayor of Garden Grove, California
Karen Goh
(1955–)
2017–present Chinese American California Republican Mayor of Bakersfield, California[33]
Ron Nirenberg
(1977–)
2017–present Filipino American, Malaysian American, Indian American California Independent Mayor of San Antonio, Texas
Ravinder Bhalla
(1974–)
2018–present Indian American New Jersey Democratic Mayor of Hoboken, New Jersey[34]
Derek Kawakami
(1977–)
2018–present Japanese American Hawaii Independent Mayor of Kauai County, Hawaii
Harry Sidhu
(1957–)
2018–2022 Indian American California Republican Mayor of Anaheim, California[35]
Sumbul Siddiqui
(1988–)
2020– Pakistani American Massachusetts Democratic Mayor of Cambridge, Massachusetts
Farrah Khan
(1971–)
2020– Pakistani American California Democratic Mayor of Irvine, California
Todd Gloria
(1978–)
2020–present Filipino American California Democratic Mayor of San Diego[36]
Michelle Wu
(1985–)
2021–present Taiwanese American Massachusetts Democratic Mayor of Boston, Massachusetts
Bruce Harrell
(1958–)
2022–present Japanese American Washington Democratic Mayor of Seattle, Washington[37]
Sokhary Chau 2022–present Cambodian American Massachusetts Mayor of Lowell, Massachusetts
Aftab Pureval
(1982–)
2022–present Indian American, Tibetan American Ohio Democratic Mayor of Cincinnati, Ohio
Helen Tran
(1981/1982–)
2022–present Vietnamese American California Democratic Mayor of San Bernardino, California
Sheng Thao
(1985–)
2023–present Hmong American California Democratic Mayor of Oakland, California
Tyrin Truong
(2000–)
2023–present Vietnamese American Louisiana Democratic Mayor of Bogalusa, Louisiana
Arunan Arulampalam
(1985–)
2024–present Sri Lankan American Connecticut Democratic Mayor of Hartford, Connecticut
Lily Wu
(1984–)
2024–present Chinese American Kansas Libertarian Mayor of Wichita, Kansas

Historic

[edit]

Benito Legarda and Pablo Ocampo, joined the House in 1907 as Resident Commissioners,[38] becoming the first Asian Americans to serve in the Congress, albeit as non-voting members.[39]

Senator Daniel Inouye of Hawaii was the President pro tempore of the United States Senate and the highest-ranking Asian American in congressional history.

In 2010, Inouye was sworn in as President Pro Tempore making him the highest-ranking Asian American politician in American history until Kamala Harris was the first Asian American to become Vice President of the United States in November 2020, and assumed the role of President of the U.S. Senate.

Current

[edit]

There are presently 16 Asian Americans or Pacific Islanders in the House and 2 in the Senate in the 118th United States Congress.[40][41] The following marks the total number of Asian Americans in the U.S. Congress since 1957: 39 representatives and 9 senators. Representatives include those from Japanese, Taiwanese, Filipino, Thai, Indian, and Chinese backgrounds.

Note that Strickland and Scott are all multiracial. Strickland is one-half Korean and one-half African American; Scott is one-fourth Filipino and three-fourths African American.

Cabinet

[edit]
Norman Mineta, first Asian American cabinet member

Norman Mineta became the first Asian American Cabinet member when he was appointed secretary of commerce by President Bill Clinton in 2000. He then served as secretary of transportation from 2001 to 2006.[43]

In the George W. Bush Administration, Elaine Chao became the first, and thus far only, Asian American woman to serve as a Cabinet secretary when she became the secretary of labor in 2001, serving until 2009.[44] She has also served as secretary of transportation in the administration of Donald Trump in 2017, serving until her resignation in 2021.

In 2009, President Barack Obama appointed Eric Shinseki to the position of secretary of veterans affairs, which he held until 2014. Shinseki was the first Asian American to hold this position. Steven Chu, the first Asian American to hold the position of secretary of energy, served from 2009 to 2013. Additionally under Obama, Gary Locke served as secretary of commerce from 2009 to 2011.

In 2017, President Donald Trump appointed Nikki Haley the first Indian American to serve in a permanent Cabinet-level position when she was confirmed to the position of ambassador to the United Nations in 2017. She held the position until 2018.

In 2021, Kamala Harris became the highest ranking Asian-American to serve in a cabinet as 49th Vice President of the United States. President Joe Biden also appointed Katherine Tai to serve as U.S. Trade Representative, a cabinet-level position.

Presidential and vice-presidential candidates

[edit]
Official portrait of the 49th Vice President Kamala Harris, 2021

In 1964, Hiram Fong, a Republican, became the first Asian-American candidate for president.[45][46]

In 1972, Patsy Mink became the first Asian-American Democratic candidate for president, and the first Japanese-American candidate for president.[47]

In 2015, Bobby Jindal, a Republican, became the first Indian-American candidate for president.[48][49]

In 2017, Andrew Yang became the first Taiwanese-American and the first Asian-American male Democratic candidate for president.[50][51]

In 2020, Tulsi Gabbard, who is of Samoan descent [52][53] became the second woman of color and the first Asian-American and Pacific-Islander (AAPI) presidential candidate to earn major party primary delegates.[54][55][56]

In 2020, Kamala Harris became the first Asian-American major party candidate for vice president, and later elected the first Asian-American vice president of the United States.[57]

[edit]
Year Presidential
candidate
Political
party
% of
asian
vote
Result
1992 George H. W. Bush Republican 55% Lost
1996 Bob Dole Republican 48% Lost
2000 Al Gore Democratic 55% Lost
2004 John Kerry Democratic 56% Lost
2008 Barack Obama Democratic 62% Won
2012 Barack Obama Democratic 73% Won
2016 Hillary Clinton Democratic 65% Lost
2020 Joe Biden Democratic 63% Won
2024 Kamala Harris Democratic 54% Lost

From the 1940s to the 1990s most Asian Americans were anti-communist refugees who had fled mainland China, North Korea or Vietnam, and were strongly anti-Communist. Many had ties to conservative organizations.[58][59] In recent years, more liberal Asian-American groups such as newer Chinese and Indian immigrants have greatly changed the Asian-American political demographics, as well as a larger proportion of younger Asian Americans, many of whom have completed college degrees.[60]

During the 1990s and 2000s, Asian American voting behavior shifted from moderate support for the Republican Party to stronger support for the Democratic Party.[61] In the 1992 presidential election Republican George H. W. Bush received 55% of the Asian-American vote compared to 31% for Democrat Bill Clinton. Asian Americans voted Republican and were the only racial group more conservative than whites in the 1990s, according to surveys.[58] By the 2004 election, Democrat John Kerry won 56% of the Asian American vote, with Chinese and Indian Americans tending to support Kerry, and Vietnamese and Filipino Americans tending to support George Bush.[62] Japanese-Americans leaned toward Kerry, while Korean-Americans leaned toward Bush.[62] Democrat Barack Obama won 62% of the Asian American vote in the 2008 presidential election,[63] with the margin increasing during the 2012 presidential election, where Asian Americans voted to re-elect Obama by 73%.[64] In the 2014 midterm elections, based on exit polls, 50% of Asian Americans voted Republican, while 49% voted Democrat; this swing toward voting for Republicans was a shift from the strong Democratic vote in 2012, and had not reached 50% since 1996.[65] The 2016 National Asian American Survey, conducted before the 2016 presidential election, found that 55% of Asian American registered voters supported Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton and only 14% supported Republican candidate Donald Trump.[66]

Despite their growing trend of voting for Democrats in national elections, Asian Americans have tended to identify as independents and have not developed strong ties to political parties as a group.[67] Due to the smaller size of the groups population, in comparison to the population as a whole, it has been difficult to get an adequate sampling to forecast voter outcomes for Asian Americans.[68] In 2008, polls indicated that 35% considered themselves non-partisan, 32% Democrats, 19% independents, and 14% Republicans.[69] The 2012 National Asian American Survey found that 51% considered themselves non-partisan, 33% Democrats, 14% Republicans, and 2% Other;[70][71] Hmong, Indian, and Korean Americans strongly identified as Democrats, and Filipino and Vietnamese Americans most strongly identified as Republicans.[71] In 2013, according to the Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund, Chinese Americans were the least likely Asian American ethnicity to have a party affiliation, with only one third belonging to a party.[72] The 2016 National Asian American Survey found that 41% of Asian Americans identified as non-partisan, 41% as Democrats (a modest increase from 2008 and 2012), and 16% as Republicans.[66]

Neither the Republican nor Democratic parties have financed significant efforts to the registration of Asian Americans, however much more attention has been focused on contributions from Asian Americans,[73] having once been referred to as potential "Republican Jews".[74] As recently as 2006, the outreach efforts of America's two major political parties have been unbalanced, with the Democratic Party devoting more resources in attracting Asian Americans.[75] In 2016, a majority of Asian-Americans possessed the same political views on racial profiling, education, social security, and immigration reform as the Democratic Party; the efforts to attract Asian-Americans has produced a proportionally significant growth in Democratic affiliation by Asian-Americans from 2012 to 2016 by 12 percent.[76] In 2016, Vietnamese and Filipinos were the least likely Asian Americans to support the presidential campaign of Hillary Clinton, with Vietnamese the most likely to back the presidential campaign of Donald Trump.[77] Political affiliation aside, Asian Americans have trended to become more politically active as a whole, with 2008 seeing an increase of voter participation by 4% to a 49% voting rate.[78] In 2017, it was reported by The Washington Post that Asian Americans born outside of the United States trended to be more conservative, and more likely to identify as Republicans, while those who were born in the United States, who were generally younger, were more likely to identify being a Democrat.[79]

See also

[edit]

References

[edit]
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Further reading

[edit]