11/98 David Wu made history by becoming the first Chinese American
congressman from the U.S. mainland
\doc\web\98\09\apcong.txt
From: Soya Jung
To: Administrator
Subject: FW: Press Release: Congratulations to David Wu
Date sent: Mon, 9 Nov 1998 14:20:06 -0800
A new APA Congressman in the Pacific NW!
-----Original Message-----
From: Asian Pacific American Institute for Congressional Studies
[mailto:apaics@apaics.org]
Sent: Monday, November 09, 1998 11:35 AM
Subject: Press Release: Congratulations to David Wu
For Immediate Release
November 9, 1998
Contact: Leigh-Ann Miyasato
(202) 547-9100
D.C. Groups Congratulate David Wu and
Stress the Importance of the APA Vote
David Wu made history by becoming the first Chinese American congressman
from the U.S. mainland by beating Republican Molly Bordonaro to represent
the First district of Oregon. He will join Senator Daniel Inouye (D-HI),
Senator Daniel Akaka, (D-HI), Rep. Robert Matsui (D-CA), Rep. Patsy Mink
(D-HI), Del. Robert Underwood (D-Guam) and Del. Eni Faleomavaega (D-Samoa)
in the 106th session of Congress.
Four other Asian Pacific American (APA) newcomers made their mark on the
national scene in the 1998 mid-term elections, most notably Matt Fong,
former California State Treasurer, who ran against incumbent Senator
Barbara Boxer. Cecy Groom, a Filipina American Democrat, lost her bid to
represent the 39th District of California to incumbent Rep. Ed Royce, John
Lim, a Korean American Republican, failed to oust Senator Ron Wyden of
Oregon and Peter Mathews, an Indian American Democrat, failed to win
against Steve Horn in the 38th District of California.
"Win or lose, APA national candidates in the mid-term elections gave a
tremendous boost to a community often overlooked by pollsters because of
our small population. Because the Boxer-Fong race was hotly-contested,
it raised Asian Pacific Americans' visibility and focused attention on our
political participation," said Francey Lim Youngberg, Executive Director
of the Asian Pacific American Institute for Congressional Studies
(APAICS).
"We expect to see more APA candidates running for national office in the
year 2000. As of 1997, there were over 2000 Asian Pacific American
elected and appointed officials on the federal, state and local level
according to the Political Almanac published by the UCLA Asian American
Studies Center. That and the success of David Wu, a trade lawyer who
never ran for office before, in a state with relatively few APAs are all
encouraging signs," said Nancy Choy, Executive Director of the National
Asian Pacific American Bar Association (NAPABA).
"According to the Washington Post exit poll, although Asian Pacific
Americans voted more Democratic (54%) than Republican (42%), we had the
narrowest gap compared to Blacks who voted 88% Democratic and Hispanics
who voted 59% Democratic. Targeting the APA vote can pay off for
political candidates of either party who make the effort to address issues
important to this community," said Debasish Mishra of India Abroad Center
for Political Awareness.
"Filipino Americans are increasingly becoming the largest Asian ethnic
group in California and Nevada. We are getting better united and more
politically savvy. In the last elections, 10 Americans of Filipino
ancestry won seats in state legislatures in Hawaii, Maryland, Washington,
West Virginia and Ohio. We also have over a dozen local elected officials
in California which will be a natural pool for future national
candidates," stated Jon Melegrito, Executive Director for the National
Federation of Filipino American Associations (NAFFAA). "Their trailblazing
efforts have opened up new opportunities for further engagement in the
political process by Asian Pacific Americans, thus paving the way for real
political empowerment."
"With Rep. Jay Kim (R-CA) losing his seat in the primaries and David Wu
winning his, the number of Asian Pacific Americans elected to national
office remains the same now as it did two years ago. However, what has
changed is the increased attention paid to the Asian Pacific American
vote. 1998 has been a remarkable year for Asian Pacific American political
activity. But we're looking forward to the day when Democrats,
Republicans, and now, the Reform Party, fully understands the significance
of this population, and find new ways to reach out to and include us in
their campaign strategies," said Mark Keam, Washington D.C. representative
for the Korean American Coalition.
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Asian Pacific American Institute for Congressional Studies (formerly
CAPACI)
209 Pennsylvania Avenue, SE
Suite 100
Washington, DC 20003
phone: 202/547-9100
fax: 202/547-9109
email: apaics@apaics.org
website: http://www.apaics.org