Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders
Asian Americans, the nation's fastest-growing group, are winning political power in California and beyond
![Portrait of Bill Keveney](https://cdn.statically.io/img/www.usatoday.com/gcdn/-mm-/a43c77962257129ab26f840cb3a383e05ca5b3ff/c=0-112-599-711/local/-/media/2018/12/11/USATODAY/USATODAY/636801291033334452-bill-keveney.png?width=48&height=48&fit=crop&format=pjpg&auto=webp)
USA TODAY
In July, California approved the groundbreaking Asian Pacific Islander Equity Budget, a $156.5 million package with victim support and mental health initiatives designed to counter decades of anti-Asian American racism and a spike in hate crimes during the COVID-19 pandemic.
That expenditure, the largest amount by far of any state passing similar legislation, is the latest symbol of the growing influence of California's 6 million Asian Americans.