PARTICIPATE IN YOUR SATURDAY, FEB 9TH PRECINCT CAUCUS
TO HAVE A VOICE IN SELECTING THE PRESIDENTIAL NOMINEES
For Asian Pacific Islander Americans (APIAs) who are committed to empowering our community, the Presidential Precinct Caucus conducted every four years by Washington’s political parties creates a conundrum and a challenge.
The precinct caucus is part of a Presidential nomination process leading to a national election with significant implications for this generation and the next, for people in our country and around the world.
The precinct caucus should involve all registered voters. However, few feel comfortable participating in the caucus. After all, the caucus bears little resemblance to the elections conducted several times a year by the County Elections Office.
Then, there is the issue of partisan politics. Many people prefer nonpartisan civic engagement work, which focuses on voter engagement for the empowerment of the community as a whole. We avoid partisan politics, which can be confrontational, even among those within the same party. In fact, most nonprofits are prohibited from engaging in partisan activities due to their special nonprofit tax status.
Other organizations choose to be nonpartisan by policy – written or informally adopted — in order to focus on their programs and not be distracted or derailed by partisan differences. We tell ourselves it’s up to individuals to learn and explore on their own. Yet if a person is not involved in a political party, there is little chance of being familiar with the caucus nomination process.
This is the conundrum: Can we mobilize the APIA community with our large immigrant population, high percentage of new citizens, broad linguistic diversity? Can we urge our registered voters to walk into a partisan process that may be foreign and intimidating? Is it worth the effort for a process that occurs just once every four years? Who will do it?
The issues and challenges of our time and our concern for future generations require us to make the effort. We need APIA’s to step forward and help others do the same. Do not leave the Presidential nomination process to others. APIAs need to speak up!
As a nonpartisan political action committee, the Northwest Coalition of Asian Pacific Americans (www.nwcapa.org) will present a bipartisan training session for Democrats and Republicans at 6:30 pm, Monday, January 28th at the Chinese Information & Service Center, located in the International District at 611 Main Street, Seattle. To RSVP or request information, contact APIAEmpowered@aol.com or phone 425-820-6570.
WHY YOUR VOTE IN THE FEB 19TH PRIMARY IS NOT ENOUGH
If you’re wondering how to talk about the caucus with friends, neighbors and the people you serve, ask them, “Do you know there’s a significant difference between the vote you specify at the caucus and the one you cast in the Presidential Primary?” Follow up by explaining: “It depends on your candidate’s political party.
• For Democrats the party will ignore the results of the statewide vote and instead allocate its 80 elected delegates using the results of the party caucuses.
• For Republicans the party will allocate about half of its 40 delegates to the Presidential nomination according to the results of the statewide election.”
STATING YOUR PREFERENCE AT THE CAUCUS IS SIMPLE
Don’t be intimidated or overwhelmed. At a minimum, show up your neighborhood precinct caucus, Feb 9th, 1 pm. Sign in and write in the name of the candidate you support for the presidential nomination. Anything else you do is optional.
The most significant difference between the caucus process and the ballots that we normally cast is the fact that the caucus is not a “winner take all” process. You and other voters from your neighborhood precinct will vote; and even if another candidate has more caucus supporters than your candidate, a proportionate share of the delegates allotted to your precinct could still be won by your candidate. When your candidate’s delegates are added to the delegates from other precincts, it’s conceivable that the individual could emerge with the highest number of delegates across the state!
To remove some of the unknowns, we recommend investing a little time to learn how the caucus system works and where your precinct caucus will be held.
Attend the NWCAPA’s bipartisan training session for Democrats and Republicans. In addition, the Democratic and Republican Parties have posted precinct meeting locators on their websites, and each party has created training materials, videos, and answers to FAQ’s — frequently-asked-questions.
Democrats: www.wa-democrats.org
Click on “Caucus Information Center
Phone: (206) 583-4345
Republicans: www.wsrp.org
Click on “Contact your county party for your caucus location”
Phone (206) 575-2900
A FINAL WORD ABOUT THE CAUCUS & THE PRESIDENTIAL PRIMARY
Very shortly, registered voters who vote by mail will begin receiving their Presidential primary election ballots. We continue to encourage APIA’s to register to vote and, once registered, to be informed and vote on a regular basis.
Voters also need to understand the important role of Washington’s Presidential Precinct Caucuses.
The returns from other state primaries and caucuses show a divided electorate. States like Washington have the opportunity to be the deciding factors in determining who the Presidential candidates will be.
Participate in your Presidential Precinct Caucus, Saturday, February 9th. 1 pm. The issues are critical, and our community is an emerging political force. Let’s insure the voice of APIA voters is heard!
Nadine Shiroma, George Cheung,
James Arima, Albert Shen, Michael Itti,
Sharon Maeda and Kristina Logsdon
& NW Coalition of Asian Pacific Americans
