Indian Americans vote for US President
As anxiety and excitement build across the US in anticipation of the outcome of Tuesday’s presidential election, Indian Americans, the second largest immigrant community in the country, will have participated in selecting who comes to power.
Will it be Democratic nominee Kamala Harris or Republican candidate Donald Trump who will head the world’s developed nation?
While poll predictions, analyses, and surveys predict a neck-to-neck fight between the two, what was on the minds of Indian Americans as they headed to the polls?
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High propensity voters
The Indian-American community is a significant force in US politics making up approximately 5.2 million of the population. They form the largest Asian American community in Pennsylvania, Georgia, North Carolina, and Michigan. According to the Indian American Attitudes Survey (IAAS) 2024, published by the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, about 2.4 million Indian Americans (“high propensity” voters) are eligible to vote. IAAS data notes that a whopping 96 percent of Indian Americans registered to vote will vote in the 2024 US election.
Who Indian Americans are voting for this election
The survey gauged voting patterns and behavior of Indian- Americans and found that roughly 47 percent of Indian Americans identified as Democrats, down from 56 percent in the 2020 survey. According to the Pew Research Center, “68% majority of Indian American registered voters identify with or lean toward the Democratic Party, and 29% identify with or lean toward the Republican Party.”
The proportion of independents has risen from 22 percent to 26 percent, and those identifying as Republican increased from 15 percent to 21 percent. This indicates a shift in political alignment within the community.
Harris’ heritage
It appears that Harris’ mixed heritage (her mother Shyamala Harris is from India and her father has Jamaican roots) was an issue with Indian American voters, especially when the Democratic candidate identified as a Black woman in several instances.
This pushed away a few voters in the South Asian community, said Rohit Chopra, a professor of communication at Santa Clara University. “There is actually more enthusiasm for someone like Tulsi Gabbard or Usha Vance, than for Kamala Harris [in the Indian American community],” adding that “In the American mainstream, Harris is perceived as African American.”
Indian Americans support Harris over Trump
According to the survey, 61 percent of registered Indian-American voters plan to support Harris, while 32 percent intend to vote for Trump. Interestingly, 67 percent of Indian American women supported Harris compared to 53 percent of men.
In contrast, 39 percent of Indian-American men plan to vote for Trump, but only 22 percent of women will support him.
Harris’s stance on abortion rights is drawing support from women while strong borders and a more liberal tax regime — core Trump promises — seem to resonate more with men.
A report by Al Jazeera quoted Milan Vaishnav, the director of the South Asia Program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace and co-author of the paper, as saying that the deepening gender gap in voting preference among the immigrant community is “a new cleavage that didn’t exist before, however, [it] is in line with the larger national trend in the US.”
“There is also a growing skepticism among some Indian American men voting for a female president,” he added.
Support for political parties
Indian American support for Democrats has traditionally been based on the perception that Republicans are intolerant towards minorities, and influenced by Christian evangelicalism.
In the community, those who vote and support Republicans, do so primarily because of a perceived weakness in the Democratic party in handling the economy, curbing illegal immigration, and a perception that the party is too left-wing and focused on “identity politics”.
Vaishnav said, “Even though the Indian American community is not very big in absolute numbers, they can help swing the decision in one direction or another.”
“There are many states where the community’s population is larger than the margin of victory in the 2020 presidential election,” he said.
Who will Indian Americans vote for?
India Currents asked some Indian American voters who they plan to vote for and why.
Accountant Vaishali Sharma* who became a US citizen in 2000 has lived in Washington DC metro region for 30 years. She said she would be voting for Harris “as she is running for Democrats, she is a woman and a minority.”
“My vote for Kamala Harris is to promote diversity in America and if selected she will be the first female president of the US,” Sharma added.
Rohan Joshi* an IT/finance professional in the federal government will also cast his vote for Harris because she works for the middle class. “I work for the federal government and Democrats support us by providing proper funding to run our agencies,” he explained. “Republicans typically work against US federal employees, as they slash government funding. Some of this aggressive legislation can cause government shutdowns due to disagreement on funding causing federal government employees to go weeks without pay.”
However, Joshi added, “I don’t think both candidates are a proper fit for the presidency, but I believe Harris may be more fit because of her more diplomatic nature.”
Ayush Sharma* a software consultant based in Maryland is voting for Harris because “Trump seems to be all about himself and the last time he was president, it was too much of a chaos. Harris is fit for president. She has grown throughout her career. She comes from the middle class, and seems decent with a logical head on her shoulder.”
Among voters planning to vote Republican was scientist Aarti Das*, who said the Republican party “is pro-India,” and that “Trump has some proven track record.”
Abhishek Agarwal*, a finance professional, is also voting Republican because he disagrees with the Democrats’ foreign policy in Bangladesh and India, and is concerned about a spike in illegal immigration.
When asked which candidate was better suited to be POTUS, Agarwal replied”I don’t like either, Harris is worse.”
Krishna Jaiswal, an engineer and real estate investor is planning to put her faith in Donald Trump. “I will be voting for Trump because of his clearly laid out policies like freedom of speech, inflation, immigration, religious freedom, tax cut for taxpayers, healthcare, etc.” Trump is his choice, Jaiswal commented because, “Kamala/ Biden will make this country borderless, and the US will never retain its number one position and a peaceful place like in the past.”
Anju Jaiswal prefers Trump to Harris because she believes that Trump could revive the strength of America in the world. “He has better policies, focused on founding principles of the United States of America.”
She added, “He has substance, leadership skills, and flexibility. Kamala is more controlled by the deep state and has extreme leftist beliefs which are not good for the country in the long term.”
What changes do Indian-Americans want?
Joshi felt that the U.S. had lost its reputation as the number one country. “Hopefully the new president will try to restore America’s political dominance in the world. Furthermore, they need to work on foreign policy and manufacturing.”Ayush Sharma and Vaishali Sharma want the next president to control inflation, improve the economy, pass women’s right to abortion nationwide, and add more diversity.
They would like the new president to help dreamers and undocumented who provide the country’s hidden labor force find a pathway to citizenship.
The Republican supporters want better foreign policy and a halt to illegal immigration. Jaiswal wants immigrants who have lied to get asylum sent back to their home countries and wants the next president to prioritize “Better border control to stop illegal immigration, improved economy, better health policies to support providers, improved educational system, equal opportunities for all citizens, improved foreign policies.”
How the next president can help the Indian-American community
According to Forbes more than one million Indians on H1B visas now await transitions to a green card permanent resident status, creating immigration backlogs that reflect problems in the U.S. immigration system. USCIS places country limits and annual quotas that are creating challenges for skilled professionals and their dependents seeking to build their lives in America.
Sharma feels the overall immigration overhaul needed can only be achieved through bipartisan legislation. “Whoever is the president, the same party needs a majority in both houses to pass the bill. White supremacists may get emboldened under Trump and cause issues for non-whites, including Indians,” he said.” Neither Harris nor Trump will “specifically” target to improve conditions of Indians in the US.
Agarwal feels that “Trump may be more reasonable towards India,” but “Harris is likely to lecture India on Ukraine, human rights, religious freedom, persecution of Muslims.”
On the the other hand says Joshi, “Trump has a history of creating problems in society. He believes that the US shouldn’t allow immigrants to progress, which can cause troubles in society.”
“Indians are in a good condition in the US. We are known as a highly privileged society in America. Harris will try to maintain peace among all societies.”
Which president will take America forward?
“I am not sure about Trump, but hope Harris will bring the country forward,” said Vaishali Sharma, an opinion echoed by Ayush Sharma. “Harris will take America forward and may help the divided nation heal and be less divisive. A Trump loss may finally help Republicans move forward as well and get better leaders, for a better future of the country.”
The Republicans felt otherwise. “Between Trump and Harris, Trump is a better bet, all around,” said Agarwal with Jaiswal expressing that “Trump has the ability to make peace in the world with his diplomatic foreign policies and is quite experienced with better support from Republicans at this time. Harris will continue most of Biden’s policies which are anyway controlled by elite group.”
Jaiswal felt that “Trump has his clear policy. Harris has no policy. She would act as a puppet of a deep state and will do whatever they want, not the general public.”
However, Joshi expressed concerns about both candidates. “I don’t think Harris will bring any big improvement. Trump can bring a big wave at the world level but again his policy can be a disaster too. While both candidates aren’t the best, Harris may be the safer option.”
(*Aliases used to protect identity)
Photo by Sora Shimazaki: https://www.pexels.com/photo/a-man-with-round-sticker-on-his-finger-5926300/