Tue Nov 05 02:44:07 UTC 2024: ## Indian Americans Remain Democratic-Leaning, But Support Wanes Since 2020: New Survey
**WASHINGTON, D.C.** – A new Carnegie survey released this week reveals that while Indian Americans remain largely aligned with the Democratic Party, their support has decreased since 2020. This comes as Vice President Kamala Harris, the first person of Indian descent to enter the Oval Office, seeks re-election.
With a population of nearly 5.2 million, Indian Americans are the second-largest immigrant group in the United States, following Mexican Americans. The 2024 Indian American Attitudes Survey (IAAS), conducted by the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, shows that roughly 2.6 million Indian Americans are eligible to vote. This group is highly engaged, with IAAS data revealing a remarkable 96% voter registration rate, indicating a significant potential impact on the 2024 election.
Notably, the Asian Indian ethnic group, including those from Pakistan and Bangladesh, comprises over 700,000 individuals in seven battleground states, according to APIAVote, a non-profit research group. Of these, an estimated 350,000-450,000 are eligible voters. These crucial swing states – Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin – are likely to decide the presidential race. Indian Americans are heavily concentrated in many metropolitan areas within these swing states, such as Atlanta, Georgia; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; Raleigh, North Carolina; and Detroit, Michigan.
Both Democrats and Republicans have actively courted Indian Americans for campaign contributions. While Indian Americans account for less than 2% of the U.S. population, their average annual income of approximately $153,000 (around ₹1.3 crore) is twice the national average.
**Who Do Indian Americans Vote For?**
The 2024 IAAS survey indicates that 60% of Indian American citizens plan to vote for Harris, while 31% favor Donald Trump. In 2020, 68% of Indian Americans expressed support for Joe Biden, compared to 22% who favored Trump.
**Why Do Indian Americans Vote The Way They Do?**
The traditional Democratic Party support among Indian Americans stems from the perception of the Republican Party’s perceived hostility towards minorities, coupled with concerns about Christian evangelism (as per 2020 IAAS). Among those who lean Republican, the Democratic Party’s perceived weakness in handling the economy, addressing illegal immigration, and perceived left-wing leanings and focus on identity politics are key drivers of support.
Milan Vaishnav, co-author of the IAAS alongside Sumitra Badrinathan and Devesh Kapoor, told Al Jazeera that skepticism about a female president is growing among some Indian American men, creating a new division within the community.
Finally, Harris’s Indian heritage appears to have a minimal impact on Indian American voters. Many Indian Americans do not identify with the Vice President, who prefers to highlight her Black heritage (from her father’s side) more prominently than her Indian identity. At least 12% of respondents in the 2024 IAAS stated that a key factor in their opposition to Harris was her strong identification with her Black heritage through her father rather than her Indian heritage.
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