Organization launches $3.5M ad campaign to turn out South Asian American, AAPI voters

The Impact Fund, a political organization representing Indian and South Asian American communities, and Future Forward, a Democratic super PAC, launched a multimillion-dollar ad blitz aimed at reaching Asian American and Pacific Islander voters to support the Harris-Walz ticket.

“We are witnessing an unprecedented moment for South Asian and Asian Americans in U.S. politics. For the first time, we have the opportunity to elect a South Asian president, whose policies will benefit all Americans and lead us on a new way forward," Impact Fund Executive Director Chintan Patel said, referring to Harris, who is Black and Indian American, in a press release issued Friday.

First reported Friday by Politico, the $3.5 million campaign is the "largest expenditure program focused on AAPI voters for a presidential candidate," according to the press release, using the acronym for Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders. The ads, which will last through Election Day, will be shown across several platforms aimed at 1.3 million eligible Asian American and Pacific Islander voters voters in Pennsylvania, Michigan, North Carolina and Georgia.

The press release was released in tandem with results from a new GBAO poll showing Harris leading Trump by a nearly 50-point margin among South Asian voters in battleground states.

According to the poll, which was commissioned by the Indian American Impact Fund, 68 percent of respondents said they would vote for Harris if the presidential election were held today, compared to 20 percent who chose Trump. Seven percent were undecided, and 4 percent said they would support a different candidate.

The survey also found that 71 percent of South Asian voters view Harris favorably, with 25 percent saying they view her unfavorably. Meanwhile, 25 percent of respondents said they view Trump favorably, while 74 percent have an unfavorable opinion of him.

The ads will focus on key issues like the economy, abortion rights and caregiver support, as well as how Harris's identity informs those issues, the release said.

The survey showed a plurality of respondents, 26 percent, said inflation and the economy were the most important issue to them. Abortion came in second at 19 percent, and foreign policy came third at 12 percent.

The poll was conducted Sept. 16-22 and surveyed 600 likely South Asian general election voters in Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, North Carolina and Pennsylvania. The margin of error was 4 percentage points at the 95 percent confidence level.