About Us
Who We Are
We are younger than the overall population and had the highest increase in voter turnout of any race in 2020. We are pro-choice, pro-climate, pro-gun control, and pro-immigration.
The National AAPI Power Fund (Power Fund) is a 501(c)(4) organization established in 2020. We exist to activate an AAPI voting bloc that can influence policy change and electoral outcomes. We ensure AAPI 501(c)(4) organizations have the resources to plan for and conduct year-round base-building efforts, electoral campaigns, and effective legislative advocacy, and to support progressive AAPI women running for office.
[1] Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) include people from East Asia, South Asia, Southeast Asia, the Philippines, and the Pacific Islands.
SEIZING OPPORTUNITIES
AAPIs represent 5.4% of the United States population, are the fastest-growing racial group in America, and are the youngest. By 2055, Asian American immigrants will surpass Hispanic immigrants in number. AAPIs are emerging as a powerful electoral constituency.
Philanthropic dollars do not come close to meeting the needs of AAPI communities. Foundation funding designated for AAPI communities accounted for just 0.20% of all U.S. grantmaking over the past three decades, 2,700% below AAPI’s share of the population. This ratio may well be even worse in calculating how political dollars are spent.
Our Impact
In 2016, with our support, the Georgia-based Asian American Advocacy Fund (AAAF) strengthened and expanded Georgia’s electorate and also produced a dramatic increase in turnout that ultimately brought Democrats control of the US Senate. In the 2020 U.S. presidential and Senatorial elections, AAAF led the effort to call 92% of the estimated 238,000 eligible AAPI voters in Georgia. By Election Day itself, 50% of the state’s registered AAPI voters had already voted — a 141% increase over the early vote.
Our Theory of Change
We create power, improve policies, and change systems by making substantive and multi-year investments into local and state-based AAPI power building groups and leaders.
What We Do
Identify, seed, and strategically resource AAPI organizations with sustained, sizable funding and tailored technical assistance year after year.
Provide leadership development and training opportunities to strengthen the pipeline of AAPI women candidates for elected office.
Commission culturally-informed research and ensure AAPI community access to quality data and tools to foster a dynamic understanding of and engagement with the AAPI electorate.
Grants
Since 2020, we have deployed resources and provided localized technical assistance to AAPI-focused 501(c)(4) organizations, as well as seeded new 501(c)(4) formation around the country.
TESTIMONIAL
“We are so grateful for our partnership with the National AAPI Power Fund. Over the last few years, the Power Fund has been a crucial partner in our mission to educate, activate, and mobilize a progressive base of Asian Americans in Georgia. Additionally, in the lead up to the 2022 Midterm Elections, their support has helped us scale our programs, grow our staff, and hone our political strategy, and we look forward to our continued work together.“
Aisha Yaqoob Mahmood
Executive Director
Asian American Advocacy Fund
TESTIMONIAL
“From day one, the Power Fund was ready to jump in with us. Our vision, our dreams, our ideas — nothing felt within reach until we had that first conversation with the Power Fund. As a young organization, it’s hard to know what questions to ask, what grants to apply to, what networks we need to build. The Power Fund took their time with us, coached us, mentored us. The time and patience was invaluable to our growth — for us as a team, but also for me, as a first-time Executive Director.”
Linh Nguyen
Executive Director
RUN AAPI