Early results indicate the Democrat won nearly four out of five votes in the Manhattan district that includes Chinatown.

Zhouyu He for World Journal

Data from the two polling stations in Chinatown, Confucius Plaza and Sun Yat-Sen Middle School, both show that the number of voters increased over previous years.

This story originally appeared in World Journal

Translated by Rong Xiaoqing from Chinese

Voters in Chinatown showed great passion in voting on Election Day. Both the Confucius Plaza and IS 131 poll sites in the neighborhood saw more voters than the last presidential election. Poll workers at the Confucius Plaza poll site said the vast majority of voters there supported former Vice President Joe Biden. Many voters said they were fed up with President Donald Trump’s mismanagement of the pandemic and his racist policies and remarks, and they felt the urge to raise their voices against racism by voting for Biden.

Weixiong Kwang, an immigrant who has been in the U.S. for 47 years, said he has cast his ballot in every election since he became a naturalized citizen. But this presidential election was the most important one in his life. “Now this country is stuck in chaos, and a downward spiral, thanks mainly to Trump,” Kwang said.

Kwang said he is not partisan and has supported candidates from both parties. His decision is always based on whether the policies of the candidates are in line with his own interests. But he said this time is different. “Trump blames China for his own faults and stirs up anti-Chinese racism,” said Kwang. “This is like how Hitler treated Jewish people, and it makes me very uncomfortable. So I voted for Biden this time.”

The current count

Preliminary returns for the 65th Assembly District, which covers Manhattan Chinatown and surrounding areas

CandidatesPartyVotesShare
Biden/HarrisDemocratic/Working Families25,52878.4%
Trump/PenceRepublican/Conservative6,53820.1%
Hawkins/WalkerGreen1400.4%
Jorgensen/CohenLibertarian1970.6%
Pierce/BallardIndependence310.1%
Write ins1310.4%
Total32,565

Xiaoting Cai, an interpreter at the Confucius Plaza poll site, said that by his observation, 80 percent of the Chinese voters there voted for Biden.

Tianqiang Moy, an immigrant who has been in the U.S. for 10 years, saw voting in this election as very important. He voted to fulfill his citizen’s duty and also to make the voices of the Chinese community heard. Moy said he despises Trump because of the president’s racist policies and remarks. He said Trump always takes China as an excuse for his own faults, and keeps repeating the words “China virus.”

“I think most New Yorkers will vote for Biden. And I voted for Biden,” said Moy.

Mrs. Pan, a 93-year-old immigrant who came to the U.S. 40 years ago, said she didn’t vote in all elections, but this one was too important to miss. And she voted for Biden.

“The country is in a critical status. I’ve never seen such chaos and fear here that people worry about their safety on the street,” said Pan. “This is all because of Trump’s racist words and policies. He leaves us Chinese in the middle of racist attacks. I hope we can elect a good president—a president who cares about his people.”