National Day of Action for Voter Registration

Thursday, October 02, 2008

I got sent some information from the program coordinator from the Asian & Pacific Islander American Vote and just wanted to make sure to let people know about some of the resources that they have available, and that there are only 34 days left until the election, and only 5 days left for many states (CO, FL, HI, MI, OH, TX, PA, and VA to name a few) until the deadline to register to vote - so make sure to get out and register to vote if you haven't already (even if you're voting for McPalin).

Here's the release that was sent along my way (and make sure to check out www.apiavote.org/dayofaction which lists all the local organizations and events that are hosting voter registration drives, phone banks, poll monitoring training and more):

APIAVote Announces October 4 as National Day of Action for Voter Registration

National Day of Action is Last Big Boost to Register almost 7 million eligible AAPI voters in 14 states


WASHINGTON, DC-- Asian Pacific Islander American Vote (APIAVote) partners & affiliates today announce Saturday, October 4, 2008, as its National Day of Action for Voter Registration, as well as a conference call this coming Thursday, October 2, 2008 to brief all interested parties about the importance of the AAPI vote this election, and how grassroots organizations are mobilizing AAPI voters to register and head to the polls on Election Day.

This Saturday, October 4, the last Saturday before the October 6 registration deadline in Virginia, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Michigan (and the last day that Nevada voters are allowed to register without being present at the office of the Registrar), APIAVote community organizations are working around the clock to register almost 7 million eligible Asian American Pacific Islander voters.

"For these five states, we really are down to the wire. Data shows that AAPI voters are still largely undecided about their presidential pick, making APIAVote's nonpartisan efforts all the more crucial in increasing electoral participation this cycle," said Vida Benavides, APIAVote Executive Director. "AAPIs are uniquely affected by many of the overarching issues the nation faces today-- including the economic crisis, access to affordable health care, affordability of higher education, and the foreclosure crisis. The AAPI population is projected to increase to 8% of the U.S. population by 2030-- for our voices to be heard and for us to be included in policymaking, we must be at the voting booth," said Benavides.

"APIAVote partners want to ensure that all eligible AAPI voters are aware of their registration deadlines, so this Day of Action for Voter Registration will consist of nationwide registration efforts through phonebanking and targeted canvassing, and at ethnic grocery stores, cultural festivals, naturalization ceremonies, and houses of worship," said Kathleen Topacio Flores, APIAVote National Campaign Director. "We of course will continue to reach out to voters after registration deadlines to get them to the polls, but our priority this weekend is registering AAPI voters," said Topacio Flores.

"The AAPI community has been called the 'new sleeping giant' of U.S. politics. While political campaigns are still questioning how to handle our voters and address our issues, nonprofit grassroots organizations have been on the ground, engaging young and old, immigrant and native born AAPIs to participate, addressing our barriers to voting, and ensuring that our voters are informed and educated by Election Day," said Eunsook Lee, APIAVote Board Co-Chair.

www.apiavote.org/dayofaction

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Asian Pacific Islander American Vote (APIAVote) is a national non-partisan, nonprofit organization that encourages and promotes civic participation of Asian Pacific Islander Americans in the electoral and public policy processes at the national, state and local levels. For more information, please visit http://www.apiavote.org/.