Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund (AALDEF), which conducts non-partisan voter surveys to document Asian American voting patterns, will monitor the Nov. 2 presidential election at several sites in Brooklyn, Manhattan and Queens (New York), and Palisades Park and Edison (New Jersey).

“In past elections, Asian Americans have faced a series of barriers in exercising their right to vote. For example, ballots have been mistranslated listing Democratic candidates as Republicans and vice versa, lack of interpreters, denial of language assistance, hostility and even outright discrimination,” AALDEF said in a news release.

AALDEF said it sought volunteers to carry out their surveys. It will offer a 45-minute training session for all first-time volunteers. In the 2000 elections 350 AALDEF volunteers surveyed more than 5,000 Asian American voters, the release said.

(Compiled from news dispatches by M. Chooki)