Why AAPI Votes Matter: 2024 Election and Beyond 

The Ash Center and the Rajawali Foundation Institute for Asia invite you to a panel discussion featuring Saatvik Ahluwalia, Desmond Ang, and Christine Chen for a compelling exploration of the AAPI community’s influence on the upcoming 2024 election. As the political landscape shifts, understanding the role of AAPI voters has never been more crucial. This event will examine the AAPI community’s electoral influence and how the AAPI vote is poised to impact the upcoming election after years of evolving AAPI voting patterns, gleaned from data analytics and polling on AAPI voters. The panel will cover how to interpret changes in AAPI voting behavior and the significance of these shifts, as well as the key issues that resonate with AAPI voters and how each party’s platforms align with their concerns and priorities.

Lunch will be served starting at 11:30 am prior to the start of the event at noon. Registration is required and open to Harvard ID holders only. This event will be recorded.

This event is co-sponsored by the HKS AAPI Caucus.

Speakers include: 

• Saatvik Ahluwalia, Vice Chair of the AAPI Commission of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts
• Desmond Ang, Assistant Professor of Public Policy at the Harvard Kennedy School 
• Christine Chen, Co-Founder and Executive Director of Asian Pacific Islander American Vote (APIAVote)
• Archon Fung (moderator), Director of the Ash Center for Democratic Governance and Innovation and Winthrop Laflin McCormack Professor of Citizenship and Self-Government

 About the Speakers

Saatvik Ahluwalia serves as the current Vice Chair of the AAPI Commission of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Ahluwalia is an award-winning digital marketer who is a Senior Campaign Manager at Zebra Technologies and Digital & Communications Director at Asian Texans for Justice. He is a Public Voices Fellow of The OpEd Project and a New Leadership Council Fellow. His work has been covered in the Boston Globe, Austin American-Statesman, Austin NPR, Ms. Magazine, and more. He has won a Platinum MarCom Award, received public-speaking awards through Toastmasters International, competed in multiple Bollywood dance championships, and was profiled in the book “Those Immigrants!: Indians in America: A Psychological Exploration of Achievement” by journalist Scott Haas.

Desmond Ang is an applied economist and assistant professor at the Harvard Kennedy School of Government. His research examines the causes and consequences of racial discrimination and has been published in leading journals including American Economic Review, American Political Science Review, and Quarterly Journal of Economics. Desmond received his PhD in economics from the University of California, San Diego, and his B.A. from Dartmouth College. 

Christine Chen is a Co-founder and Executive Director of Asian Pacific Islander American Vote (APIAVote), the nation’s leading national, nonpartisan organization to engage, educate, and empower Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders (AAPIs) to strengthen their voices and create impact. Since 2007, APIAVote’s mission has been to work with local and state community-based organizations (CBOs) to mobilize AAPI communities in electoral and civic engagement and build power in AAPI communities by investing in their capacity and infrastructure to mobilize voters. Chen has been a champion for the empowerment of AAPI communities from the start of her career. Moving to Washington, DC, from Ohio, she took on organizing and leadership roles at the Organization of Chinese Americans (OCA), and started a consulting firm, Strategic Alliances USA which was built on her broad and deep pool of relationships and skills in the AAPI community and in government. Chen’s firm included clients such as the Linsanity documentary, Comcast, and USDA to coordinate their outreach to Hmong farmers in Arkansas.

About the Series

This event is part of the 2024 U.S. Election Series sponsored by the Ash Center for Democratic Governance and Innovation. As the United States heads to the polls in November, this series will convene scholars and practitioners to discuss down-ballot issues, election administration, election security, voter trends, and more.

Event Details

Registration is required for this event using the link above. This event is in person and open to Harvard ID holders. Please register using your Harvard email address.

The Ash Center encourages individuals with disabilities to participate in its events. Should you wish to enquire about an accommodation, please contact our events team at info@ash.harvard.edu prior to the event.

Additional questions? Email the Ash Center events team at info@ash.harvard.edu.