On the sidelines of the Democratic National Convention, the grass-roots organization “South

On the sidelines of the Democratic National Convention, the grass-roots organization “South Asians For Obama” held a meeting Sept. 4, in Charlotte, North Carolina, to determine a strategy for capturing the South Asian American voter bloc for President Barack Obama’s re-election.

The informal “meet and greet” evening reception was held at a bar at the Hilton Hotel in Charlotte. In a press release announcing the event, SAFO noted that the event aimed to create networking opportunities for Indian Americans and others who had come from all over the U.S. to show their support for Obama.

SAFO was founded in 2007 to engage the South Asian American community in electing the country’s first African American president. The organization has chapters in seven metropolitan cities across the U.S.

Anil Babbar, spokesman for the San Francisco Bay Area chapter of SAFO, told India-West that the organization had re-emerged to re-generate interest in Obama’s re-election bid.

“The (Obama) campaign doesn’t have the same level of interest it did four years ago,” he said. “We’re here to drum up energy, drum up support, and really get people excited again.”

During the last presidential election cycle, SAFO obtained lists of Democratic voters and independents across the country, and highlighted South Asian American names. In classic grass-roots campaigning, SAFO volunteers, using their cell phones, gathered at donated spaces throughout the country to call all the voters on those lists. The prospect of an Indian American calling another Indian American about his voter preferences made the campaign hugely successful, said Babbar.

“California is not going to swing so much, but we can provide the manpower to turn swing states,” he said. “We have to convince people that it’s not a done deal, that it’s not a cake walk.”

“People have to understand that the president’s work is not done,” Babbar emphasized to India-West.

The U.S. India Political Action Committee also held receptions at both the RNC and the DNC. The Republican convention reception was attended by South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley, who expressed her appreciation to the Indian American attendees for their support of her 2010 gubernatorial campaign.

USINPAC chairman Sanjay Puri , who hosted the events, said in a press statement, “For more than a decade we have worked with many local, state and federal candidates on both sides of the aisle, and continue to lend our support to leaders who stand for issues important to the Indian American community.”

USINPAC also announced its support for Democratic congressional candidates Ami Bera in California, Manan Trivedi in Pennsylvania, and Upendra Chivukula in New Jersey. The organization also expressed its support for Hawaii’s Tulsi Gabbard, who is not Indian American but identifies as a Hindu.

APIAVote also held a caucus at the DNC. In a statement released Sept. 6, the organization stated, “President Obama is working to put AAPIs and all Americans back to work in an economy built to last and to restore middle-class security.” The organization noted 29 consecutive months of private sector job growth that have added almost 4.5 million private sector jobs.

The Obama administration provided over $7 billion to Asian American small business owners and enacted 18 tax cuts for small businesses, stated the organization, adding that the budget plan proposed by the Republican challenger would be “disastrous” to Asian American families, especially seniors.