Asian-Americans’ trust in Trump fading as economic woes increase, survey finds

Being object of ICE raids, detention, visa denial and deportations under Trump administration also contributing factors, AAPI poll reveals

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Mark Magnierin New York

Published: 5:26am, 20 Oct 2026Updated: 5:28am, 20 Oct 2026

Asian-Americans are laser-focused on the economy and healthcare costs and increasingly disenchanted with US President Donald Trump and his Republican Party leading into the highly consequential November 3 midterm elections, according to a survey released on Monday.

While the general trend among Asian-American and Pacific Islanders (AAPI) mirrors the broader US electorate, the minority community’s views are frequently more pronounced, seen in part because they have been the object of more raids, detention, visa denial and deportations under the Trump administration.

“The ranking of issues is similar. But the level is certainly elevated among Asian-Americans,” said Karthick Ramakrishnan, founder of AAPIVote, which conducted the data poll with AP-NORC. “Even if people think ‘oh Asians generally are better off economically than the US average,’ this is where even immigration leads to economic insecurity.”

Many Asian families also have strong trans-Pacific family ties that have been undercut by Trump’s immigration policies.