By Natalie Bray, 2026 CLA Intern
“Yes We Tran!” Me and my team, composed of Kayla Mar, Alan Alexander, Kara Mak, Abhishek Jagannathan, and of course our candidate Jayden Tran, chanted this phrase after getting urged to do so by Lake County Treasurer Holly Kim prior to our candidate’s speech. Teammates, Treasurer, and Tran: the three T’s of the night perfectly encapsulate the mock election and its aim towards providing the cohort not only with faux campaigning experience, but also an opportunity to grow into ourselves as young professionals.
The mock election canvassing began in the morning at the third annual AAPI LEAD Summit held in Los Angeles, California. Going into this morning's event, I was nervous, as I had never helped on a campaign before, nor canvassed for a candidate (let alone having that candidate also be my friend). Going up the escalator, I did not know what the day held for me, and also wondered if people would even give me the time of day to give them my rehearsed pitch about Measure G and the newfound LA County Executive position that would be going into effect after the election in 2028. Brochures and red envelopes in hand, I paired up with my teammate AJ in order to begin our canvassing journey.
Our first gameplan was to go into the actual stage area, and find individuals to talk to who were making their way out of the previous panel discussion. We ran into Susan Jin Davis, Chair of the AAPI LEAD Foundation Board of Directors, and a woman who I had done research on for the day prior, when my boss Congressman Ted Lieu was on a panel in which she was introducing him. Tentatively, I stood by her and her comrade who she was in conversation with before she turned to me with a big smile. AJ and I ended up having a lively conversation with her about what we were campaigning for, what our internship at CAUSE consisted of, and if we would see her at the reception later in the day. Through jokes being cracked and laughs being shared, all of my anxieties were eased. She even gave us other individuals to talk to, who also shared Susan’s friendliness. AJ and I continued on talking to people at the summit, from interns to public officials, from welcoming to dismissive. All of which were important interactions that helped me not only gain more knowledge about the most pressing issues that people cared about in the political sphere, but also how to interact with individuals of all backgrounds and political positions.
At the reception, vibes were high. The energy was up, people were lively, and I was confident. Going off on my own this time, I was able to talk to so many individuals I had met earlier, and also new ones. When we all gathered to listen to candidate speeches, I truly felt empowered by both of our candidates, and was so proud of everyone in the cohort for their hard work and dedication to our communal research project and campaign. It truly felt like we had an important role in the work we were doing through our education on Measure G and the Los Angeles County Executive, and I look forward to seeing this all play out in real time in 2028. I would say this day was pretty TRANsformative.
