2026 Midterm Election Voter Poll Shows What Moved AAPI Voters in 2026: Cost of Living, Immigration, and Voting Rights; Highlights AAPI Voters’ Concerns about Rising Hate and Discrimination

Contact

Sofia Costas scostas@advancingjustice-aajc.org

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, Asian Americans Advancing Justice – AAJC (Advancing Justice – AAJC), joined by Asian and Pacific Islander American Vote (APIAVote), hosts a virtual briefing to unpack how and why Asian and Pacific Islander Americans voted in the 2026 midterm election based on findings from the 2026 Midterm Election Voter Poll. You can watch the recording here.

Leaders from these national organizations are joined by researchers, experts, and leading scholars to discuss the issues AAPI voters said were most important to them as they voted in the midterm election.

KEY FINDINGS ABOUT AAPI VOTERS FROM THE 2026 MIDTERM ELECTION VOTER POLL

• Voting Rights: AAPI voters overwhelmingly support stronger voting rights protections and language access. Nearly eight in ten AAPI voters (79%) support passing a new Voting Rights Act to eliminate barriers to voting, while 77% agree that language translations or interpreters should be available to voters who do not speak or read English well. Additionally, 59% worry that voting rights are under attack and that the current environment makes it harder to participate in democracy.
   
• Immigration: Nearly nine in ten AAPI voters (89%) overwhelmingly support changes to our immigration system that include a pathway to citizenship and pathways for families. We also see broad openness (76 percent AAPI) to replacing our current approach to immigration enforcement with one that focuses on fairness, family unity, and due process.
   
• Hate and Discrimination: AAPI voters are concerned about discrimination, government targeting, and the normalization of hate. Fifty-seven percent of AAPI voters worry that government policies could target their communities based on race, ethnicity, religion, language, immigration status, or national origin. Two-thirds (66%) worry that hate and discrimination against minorities and immigrants are becoming more acceptable, while 66% worry that elected officials and political candidates are not doing enough to speak out against hate.
   
• The Moveable Middle : After Latino voters, AAPIs had the largest partisan swing (9 points) from Republican to Democrat from 2024 to 2026. What this reinforces is that AAPI voters are not committed to party loyalty, but are motivated by what the governing party is able to deliver on the issues that matter to them most. The message to both parties is to not take our voters for granted and use the legislative power they have to understand and address the issues that impact our communities. 
   
• AAPI voters continue to turnout : AAPI voters are sustaining the higher turnout that started in 2018. This growth is being driven by new and low propensity voters with 1 in 3 AAPI voters last voting in 2022 or later and 1 in 8 AAPIs voting for the first time voters. We have also seen campaigns reach out more to our communities, but we know that these voters are not their primary target which is why APIAVote and our national network of trusted community based partners are a critical driver to AAPIs having their voices heard. 
   
• 1 in 3  were contacted by nonpartisan or community orgs : APIAVote and our national network of trusted community based partners are a critical driver to AAPIs having their voices heard. At a time when all civic engagement focused nonprofits are experiencing a historic disinvestment in our work, our networks continue to do more with what we have, and it shows how effective we are. However, this is not sustainable. 

The poll website, 2026electionpoll.us, provides a detailed array of data, including crosstabs by state and race. The findings reveal how issues like voting rights and affordability influenced the vote choices of AAPI voters in the 2026 midterm election. The poll also includes oversamples of AAPI (n=2,000), Latino (n=3,050), Black (n=1,800), and Native American (n=1,400) voters.

“While the cost of living remains a central concern, Asian American voters showed up this midterm election with clear priorities to protect the freedom to vote of every voter, reform our immigration system, demand accountability for ICE actions, and addressing a rise in hate and discrimination against minority communities,” said John C. Yang, president and executive director of Asian Americans Advancing Justice – AAJC (Advancing Justice – AAJC).  Voters are rejecting abuses of power, demanding government accountability, and calling for policies that protect their families, their rights, and their communities.” 

“These election results made clear that Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander voters stand firmly in solidarity with other communities of color. Any suggestion that our communities would serve as a wedge is entirely inaccurate and erases our shared struggle and political reality. We are in deep solidarity with our allied communities of color as we look to build our collective future,” Yang added.

“What stands out in these findings is the breadth of support for policies that help people participate fully in our democracy,” said Taeku Lee, director of AAPI polling at BSP Research. “Seventy-nine percent of AAPI voters support a new Voting Rights Act, 77% support language assistance for voters, and 89% support immigration changes that include pathways to citizenship and for families. Together, these findings put access, opportunity, and family unity at the center of the priorities AAPI voters are expressing.”

“Asian American and Pacific Islander voters continue to shape elections and are growing stronger by the year. One in four became first-time voters in recent years. Many are young people and new citizens -- the first in their families to vote in this country,” said Christine Chen, executive director of Asian and Pacific Islander American Vote. “ While AAPIs are not a monolith of identity, we are voting because we are unified on our policy priorities: affordability, cost of living, and civil rights under threat. Our message to elected leaders is clear: Don’t just court our votes; work with us and bring our community to the decision-making table.”

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