Just Where Is the Asian American Woman’s Vote?

Their participation could make a difference, but their eligibility and rights have had a challenging start

Asian Americans vote on Election Day at a Denny’s Restaurant in Temple City, Los Angeles County, on November 6, 2012 in California. Photo: FREDERIC J. BROWN/AFP/Getty Images

In many ways, 32-year-old Korean American Hannah Kim is an active member of New York’s Queens community. A law school graduate and private school teacher, she volunteers her time interpreting for Koreans at immigration court and teaches Bible study every weekend. Yet, how did she demonstrate her civic duty at the polls during the 2016 presidential election? “I literally just sat there and flipped a coin,” Kim said.

Her disengagement with politics is not a rarity in the Asian American community. The Asian Americans and Pacific Islander (AAPI) community often demonstrates the lowest voter turnouts in the country. Startling 2012 numbers from the U.S. Census show that only 48.7% of eligible Asian American women voted in the presidential election (compared to 53.9% of Latinas and 82.1% of African American women). Where is the Asian American woman’s vote?

As a result of discriminatory laws like the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882, Asians were unable to naturalize and ineligible to vote in the United States until 1952. During this time, the first Asian Americans were elected to office; they in turn opened doors for immigration reform nationwide…