“Do you know how to read?” Not a question you’d expect from a poll worker during the election process. But those are the words of one white female poll worker in Arlington, VA. She posed the question to a Filipino American voter while he cast his absentee ballot in the Mid-term elections on November 7, 2006.

Discrimination at the polls is not uncommon, and the Arlington, VA incident is not just one in only a handful of incidences. The Asian American Legal Defense Education Fund (AALDEF,) a 34 year-old civil rights organization, compiled a study titled Asian American Access to Democracy in the 2006 Elections. It cites numerous offenses of civil rights, federal laws, and obstacles for Asian Americans exercising their right to vote.

Polls and pollsters at 25 cities violated the Voting Rights Act and Help America Vote Act (HAVA) – including states such as New York, New Jersey, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, Michigan, Illinois, Washington, Virginia, Maryland, and the District of Columbia.

The report listed other examples of hostile poll workers and conditions, citing offenses such as:

- Limited interpreters and translated voting materials
- Poorly trained poll workers
- Missing or incorrectly listed Asian American voters’ names
- Poll workers making improper or excessive demands for identification only from Asian Americans

“As states prepare for the 2008 Presidential Elections, we urge election officials to remove the barriers that prevent Asian American citizens from exercising their right to vote,” said Margaret Fung, AALDEF executive director.

Before the spotlight is cast solely on election officials, however, it’s important to examine where the fault lies most heavily.

Asian American citizens, of course.

In 2004, election turnout rates for Asian Americans were 44 percent, the lowest for any ethnicity, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. What incentive is there for officials to make voting more accessible to Asian Americans when a majority of Asian Americans don’t vote?

The youth vote (18-24 years) once shared a similar situation – year after year, the youth didn’t make it out to the polls. This inaction, which hit its lowest point late in the 1998 election (only 18 percent, according to League of Women Voters) created a vicious cycle: politicians didn’t address issues concerning the youth, and the youth concluded that politicians didn’t care about their issues. So why vote?
In the past two election cycles, youth votes have turned out in record numbers, creating a large amount of media buzz and attention. Politicians can no longer take the youth vote for granted.

This year, Asian Americans finally flexed their political prowess in the voting booths. In the California Democratic primary this past February, Asian Americans played a significant factor in Sen. Hilary Clinton’s (D-N.Y.) victory. In California, Asian Americans make up 8 percent of the vote, and they supported Clinton over Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) by a 3-1 margin.

Meanwhile, in Hawaii – which boasts a 41 percent Asian American demographic, and Obama’s birth-state – supported Obama by a 3-1 margin.

It’s a small step, but symbolically, an important one. Collectively, Asian Americans can add weight to their vote, bringing more media attention and political concern to listen to their voices. The firsts step is getting to the ballot boxes. Only then will Washington trouble itself with issues affecting the Asian American community.

For more information on how you can help, visit apiavote.org, and http://www.aaldef.org.

Chris was born in upstate New York, and graduated May 2008 from Rutgers University. He co-founded Native Tongue, Rutgers' first Asian American newspaper, and he's currently freelancing, traveling, and avoiding the nine-to-five.