Democrats’ investments in their multiracial coalition are already paying off

In January the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC), the campaign arm of House Democrats, announced a historic eight-figure investment to reach the Asian American, Native Hawaiian, Pacific Islander, Black and Latino communities ahead of the 2024 elections. This monumental investment will help to ensure Democrats can restore responsible leadership and take the House back from the grips of Republican chaos. 

We know voters of color are critical for Democrats’ path to taking back the House — and we are taking nothing for granted. Voters of color — like all Americans — are concerned about the rising cost of gas, housing and groceries, being able to afford their medications or go to the doctor if they get sick, and making sure their kids are safe from gun violence in school. Just as in prior years, we are going all in this election to make the case to these communities that Democrats not only understand these issues but are also the party that will concretely address them. 

While in the majority, House Democrats worked to address key economic concerns that are consistently top of mind for voters of color. 

Through the Inflation Reduction Act, we capped the price of insulin for Medicare recipients at $35. Data has shown how much this positively impacts communities of color, as Black, Hispanic and American Indian/Alaska Native adults have higher rates of diabetes in the United States than white Americans. 

And that’s not all. The Inflation Reduction Act also lowered monthly health insurance premiums leading to lower costs and improved insurance rates for Asian-American, Native Hawaiian, Pacific Islander, Black and Latino communities.

Working families across this country want to know that their elected leaders in Washington will deliver on key, top-of-mind issues like lowering costs, expanding health care, protecting democracy and enshrining their essential freedoms. Yet with Republicans at the helm, this has been one of the least productive sessions of Congress in modern history.

What we’ve seen over the past year is undeniable: A complete disregard from Republicans for addressing the concerns of the majority of voters of color and working families. Instead, Republican control of the House of Representatives has brought us nothing but chaos and dysfunction. 

Democrats stand against this tide of dysfunction, and we are committed to ensuring that voters of color understand this goes far beyond Republicans’ lip service. Our historic investment in reaching these voters through persuasion and mobilization is a multifaceted, dynamic program. These efforts will cover the earliest investment by the DCCC in voter protection and education, leading to the hiring of pivotal staff who will work to understand nuances within key districts across the congressional map to develop customized strategies to combat the aggressive and discriminatory voter suppression tactics that target communities of color. 

These efforts to meaningfully engage Asian-American, Native Hawaiian, Pacific Islander, Black and Latino voters include hiring local organizers to lead community outreach and increase on-the-ground presence in key races, focusing on voter registration, community events and building relationships with grassroots groups. This comes in addition to robust qualitative and quantitative research to inform our paid media persuasion and mobilization program that will meet voters of color where they are in digital, radio, mail and TV. 

House Democrats know that our broad multiracial coalition is our strength. 

Just a few weeks ago in the special election in New York’s 3rd Congressional District, where Congressman-elect Tom Suozzi (D) beat out a right-wing Republican, Democrats made a concerted effort to organize and mobilize the Asian-American, Native Hawaiian, Pacific Islander and Latino community as an essential part of Suozzi’s path to victory. This was critical in a district where nearly 1 out of every 5 voters is Asian American and was a sign of the outreach we plan to replicate in other districts across our battlefield. 

Alongside investments from the Suozzi campaign, ASPIRE PAC — the “political arm of Asian American and Pacific Islander members of Congress” chaired by one of us — invested heavily in Asian-American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander outreach and engagement during the special election. This includes co-hosting multiple in-language media roundtables, leveraging the ASPIRE relational organizing network for targeted phone banking and placing in-language digital banner ads in key outlets. 

The ASPIRE chair and its members also campaigned alongside Suozzi in the district, including Caucus Vice Chair Ted Lieu (D-Calif.) and Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-Ill.). 

It is not an understatement to say that this election will be a defining moment for our democracy. It will be a clear choice between Democrats, who fight to deliver working families what they need to thrive and live safely, and Republicans who vote to rip away women’s reproductive freedom, cut services for veterans, defund law enforcement and gut manufacturing jobs. 

Our efforts in New York’s special election show us that through our historic outreach to communities of color, we can restore normalcy to the People’s House and make history by electing Rep. Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) as the first Black Speaker of the House of Representatives so we can get back to work delivering for all Americans.

Rep. Grace Meng (D-N.Y) is chair of ASPIRE PAC. Rep. Gregory Meeks (D-N.Y.) is chair of the Congressional Black Caucus PAC. Rep. Linda Sánchez (D-Calif.), is chair of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus BOLD PAC.