UNC senior Tai Huynh answers questions relating to Town Council campaign

Members of the UNC Asian American Students Association gathered in the FedEx Global Education Center Wednesday evening to hear the thoughts and insights of an individual running for Chapel Hill Town Council — UNC senior Tai Huynh.

Senior and AASA Political ChairpersonDaniel Kang served as the moderator of the event. The in-depth Q&A session covered topics such as race relations, climate equity and the importance of voting.

While AASA has a policy of not formally endorsing candidates, Kang said the association works to promote diversity awareness across campus.

“We have a commitment to promoting greater dialogue on Asian American identity and especially how that relates to civil engagement and University life,” Kang said. “We saw an intersection of all these things tonight.”

Huynh, a computer science major and Morehead-Cain scholar, announced his candidacy for the Chapel Hill Town Council in the spring. 

Huynh said, if elected, he will be the second-ever Asian American to serve on the council, with the first being current council member Hongbin Gu. 

“It has been a very uphill battle for our campaign, both because I am young and a person of color,” Huynh said. “Specifically, as a young Asian American, gaining credibility has been a hard thing for us.”

Kang said that many Asian Americans running for office face the bamboo ceiling — similar to the glass ceiling challenging women — because they are deemed unfit for leadership positions. 

Huynh said he hopes to break past this obstacle by encouraging students, especially Asian Americans, to get out and vote.

“Asian Americans have the largest minority caucus in the Democratic party in the state of North Carolina, and the largest minority population in Chapel Hill,” Huynh said. “As a voting bloc, we have a huge say — if we got out and voted.”

Jennifer Yu, a sophomore who serves as the AASA design chairperson, said Huynh’s candidacy is a step in the right direction for the future of Asian Americans in the political realm.

“I firmly believe in Asian American representation, especially in politics," Yu said. "Asian American voices are generally not as included as much. I was really interested in hearing about Tai and his experience running as an Asian American for Town Council."

Huynh said since announcing his run for Chapel Hill Town Council, he has faced two main struggles: getting the resources for his campaign and balancing his life as a student and candidate.

“As a really young person, we don’t have the same social capital as the more established candidates,” Huynh said. “They’re able to self-fund because they have jobs. I have to more strongly rely on donations from students but not many are able to donate. While it’s been manageable, it’s definitely been a challenge, especially being a student, running a personal company of mine and having a campaign.” 

Huynh said previously elected officials have described this election as the most important in Chapel Hill’s history.

Election Day for Chapel Hill is Nov. 5, with early voting beginning Oct. 16 and lasts until Nov. 1. The nearest voting center to campus is Chapel of the Cross, located next to Morehead Planetarium. 

“We, as students, talk a lot about social change and impact, but the opportunities to actually make that a reality are literally just down the street,” Huynh said. “This is a very crucial election. It is very important for you to become involved. I don’t care who you vote for. Just vote.”

university@dailytarheel.com