In the US midterm elections held on the 3rd, some Korean-American candidates won seats in the House of Representatives. Dan Ko was elected for the first time in Massachusetts's 6th District, Rep. Marilyn Strickland won a fourth term in Washington's 10th, and Rep. Dave Min of California looks likely to win re-election.
According to Etoday, Democrat Dan Ko's win in Massachusetts's 6th District was called by the Associated Press at 10:24 p.m. local time. As of 1:20 a.m. on the 4th he had 64.3 percent (136,664 votes), well ahead of the Republican candidate's 35.7 percent (75,820 votes). Etoday described him as the first Asian American from Massachusetts to enter the House.
광고 문의 · 300×250The same report said Strickland of Washington's 10th District defeated Republican Chris Jung and won a fourth term. Vote figures were not given in the article.
Mixed picture in California
Korea Daily reported interim counts as of 10 a.m. on the 4th. In California's 47th District, Democratic Rep. Dave Min had 56.7 percent with 69 percent counted, about 13 points ahead of the Republican candidate, and his re-election looks comfortable.
Republican Rep. Young Kim, by contrast, faces fellow Republican Rep. Ken Calvert in the 40th District after redistricting; with 42 percent counted she had 45.5 percent to Calvert's 54.5 percent, trailing by 9 points. California counts mail ballots slowly, so the outcome is not settled, and that remains unconfirmed.
What it means for Korean-American political weight
Etoday reported that if all incumbents hold their seats, there would be four Korean-American House members, and with Sen. Andy Kim of New Jersey, who was not up this year, a record five. That number could change depending on Young Kim's result.
Financial News carried a headline saying a Korean-American gubernatorial candidate lost, but we could not check the body of that article. Korea Daily also reported mixed results for Korean-American candidates in California's insurance commissioner, state assembly and city council races. Final results need rechecking once counting ends.