San Francisco's Asian voters tell local news why they are 'walking away' from the Democrats
Asian Americans in liberal San Francisco are speaking out about how members of their community, ranging from Trump supporters to left-leaning organizers, are leaving the modern Democratic Party, according to a new report in The San Francisco Standard.
The Standard reporters Han Li and Noah Baustin shared a piece highlighting how, even in one of America's most well-known liberal cities, one of its historic ethnic communities is growing wary of far-left policy. The piece opened with an anecdote about local State Sen. Scott Wiener speaking to seniors at a Chinese New Year celebration, where he attempted to warn them about the hazards of Trump's return to the White House.
"The message fell on deaf ears for some in the audience," the Standard's reporters said. "Quite a few voted for Trump and are no fans of Democrats, who have long dominated San Francisco politics."
The story is headlined, "Why SF's Asian American voters are walking away from the Democratic party."
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The authors quoted Lai Wah Hun, a local Trump-supporting resident who attended the event, "Many of my neighbors support Trump," he said. "Democrats are too left. I don't like them." While he noted he has more relaxed views on immigration than Trump, he argued, "Democrats are making America like a sinking ship."
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His views are surprisingly widespread in the area, the story claims. The authors note the Visitacion Valley and Portola took the biggest swing toward Trump in this past election and have large Asian populations.
"The seven neighborhoods that voted for Trump at the highest rates in 2024 have the city's largest Asian populations. Six of the 10 neighborhoods that saw the largest increase in Trump voting between 2020 and 2024 were close to or majority Asian," the reporters said. "Underlying this turn to the right among Asian voters is a mounting distrust of the Democratic Party."
Rex Tabora, the executive director of the Asian Pacific American Community Center in Visitacion Valley told the local news outlet that famous incidents of crimes against Asian victims have made locals increasingly wary of their officials. "When it comes to public safety, Asians are law-and-order kind of folks," he said.
In the same neighborhood, a loyal supporter of the president who has run for mayor multiple times, Ellen Lee Zhou, was credited by the news outlet as having "likely played a role in the shift toward Trump." Zhou, The Standard reported, makes regular appearances on "Companion on the road," a Chinese-language radio where she discusses politics and criticizes Democratic leadership.
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"I want to educate law-abiding citizens to support Trump, and illegal immigrants are exploiting our welfare system," Zhou explained to The Standard in Chinese, estimating her audience is between 30,000 and 50,000 listeners.
The Standard also spoke to left-leaning Asian politicians as local Democrats grow wary of their slipping hold on this demographic.
"It's clear that voters are frustrated with national Democrats, including many in the Chinese community in San Francisco," Nancy Tung, chair of San Francisco's Democratic Party said. "I'm committed to making sure we engage the Chinese community and other immigrant communities to hear their concerns and win them back in the next and future elections."
One example of the Democratic Party's tattered brand is how a local progressive Asian group, The Rose Pak Democratic Club, changed its name by removing "Democratic" from its name, as noted in a separate piece by The San Francisco Standard.
"Club leaders said they wanted the move to serve as a wake-up call to the party about the increasing detachment in the Asian community," The Standard summarized.
Club president Jeremy Lee said that the Democrats are particularly struggling with immigrants who exclusively speak Chinese. He said that "Some of the seniors were saying, 'I like you, but I don't like the Democratic Party,'" and that concepts like "defund the police" fall flat with the Chinese American community.
The Chinese American Democratic Club (CADC), a moderate group, has reportedly met success by contrasting itself against progressivism.
CADC president Josephine Zhao touted in a statement to The San Francisco Standard, "We are proud to help our community in voicing their centrist views."Original article source: San Francisco's Asian voters tell local news why they are 'walking away' from the Democrats
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