As part of his efforts leading up to Election Day, former President Donald Trump will be addressing the Asian American and Pacific Islander community at a rally in Nevada on Thursday.
Trump will be taking the stage in Las Vegas alongside former GOP presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswami and former Hawaii representative Tulsi Gabbard in an event that’s one of his first geared towards Asian communities. The “Unite for Change” rally, organized by conservative political action committee Turning Point USA, will feature musical performances and speeches culminating in a keynote speech from Trump.
Organizers say they aim to bring Asian voters into the conservative movement and convince them Trump is the best choice for them.
“These are voters whose values closely align with the conservative platform but have been given too little attention by our movement,” Turning Point founder and president Charlie Kirk said in a news release. “Just as we’re seeing huge shifts with Hispanics and the black community, this is a group that is poised to resonate powerfully with President Trump’s message of economic empowerment, law-and-order, safe streets, and a return to orderly, sane immigration policies,” the release continued.
Asian Americans are the fastest growing demographic in Nevada and make up 12% of the state’s electorate — with Filipinos making up the largest subgroup. Exit polling after the 2020 election showed 58% of eligible voters in the community supported President Joe Biden while 40% supported Trump.
The Harris campaign has been courting them for months.
Progressive AAPI leaders take issue with Kirk’s characterization of Asians in the state aligning with Trump, saying their observation has been the opposite.
“Our team has knocked on over 150,000 doors this year, and we’re not hearing that Trump’s message is resonating. In fact, many people are tired of his rhetoric,” said Eric Jeng, executive director of nonprofit One APIA Nevada. “The folks we’ve talked to, including small business owners and working families, are still feeling the impact of his administration’s actions — from tax cuts for the wealthy and the mishandling of the pandemic to the rise in anti-Asian hate.”
But Trump campaign spokesperson Steven Cheung says the former president has long been a champion of AAPI interests.
“There has been no bigger advocate for the AAPI community than President Trump, as he created an environment where diversity, equal opportunity, and prosperity were afforded to everybody,” he said. “Anyone who says otherwise is disgustingly using the AAPI community to play political games for their own benefit.”
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