US election: Why are more Indian-Americans turning to Donald Trump?

Name: Mumbai artists paint Trump and Biden ahead of US presidential election
Uploaded: 2020-11-01T14:30:15.000Z
Duration: 1 min 6 s
Description: Mumbai artists paint Trump and Biden ahead of US presidential election

Numbering almost 2 million, Indian-American voters have traditionally supported Democrats in droves

But increased immigration is leading to a slight conservative shift this election, as the tide of Hindu nationalism in Modi’s India reaches US shores

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An artist paints an image of Joe Biden next to a painting of US President Donald Trump in Mumbai, India. Photo: AFP

Soumya Shankar

Published: 10:30pm, 1 Nov 2020Updated: 6:52pm, 12 Nov 2020

They make up just 1 per cent of the US electorate, but Indian-Americans could be an important swing bloc at the November 3 presidential election.

With more than 1.9 million eligible voters, some analysts say the community could tip the balance in key swing states with close calls: Florida, Georgia, Michigan, Pennsylvania and Texas, which has 160,000 Indian-American voters.

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Mumbai artists paint Trump and Biden ahead of US presidential election

According to an October 29 survey conducted by the UMass Lowell Center for Public Opinion, President Donald Trump had the support of 48 per cent of likely Texas voters, while Biden had 47 per cent. Some 1 per cent said they were undecided.

But while Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden and his part-Indian running mate, Kamala Harris, may appear appealing to a group that has long leaned left, recent surveys suggest a spike in the number of Trump-voting Indians, with many former Democratic supporters pledging to back the president.

A survey by AAPI Data showed that while just 16 per cent of the community supported Trump in 2016, that number was projected to rise to 28 per cent this election – the strongest support by Indian-Americans for a Republican candidate by far.