Washington: Trump would think that Indian-Americans will vote for him in the November 03 presidential elections. US President Donald Trump highlighting the great relationship that he has developed with Indian Americans and Prime Minister Narendra Modi. US president Donald Trump speaking to the media persons at White House news conference that “we have great support from India. We have great support from Prime Minister Modi. I would think that the Indian (American) people would be voting for Trump.”

Trump was responding to a question on a video titled, “Four more years” released by the Trump Campaign during the Republican National Convention last month. Tweeted by Kimberly Guilfoyle, national chair of Trump Victory Finance Committee and retweeted by his son Donald Trump Jr, the video conceptualized by Al Mason, co-chair of the Trump Victory Indian American Finance Committee, has short clips from the Modi-Trump joint address in Houston last year and Ahmedabad in February this year. “Would Kimberly, Don Jr, and Ivanka Trump, who are very popular among Indian Americans, would be campaigning on your behalf among the Indian Americans with your views on India-US relationship?” he was asked.

Trump said, “I know India and I understood those young people (Kimberley, Donald J Trump Jr and Ivanka) that you mentioned. They’re very good young people. And I know their relationship with India is very good and so is mine.” US President Trump said that he has a very good relationship with PM Modi. “Prime Minister Modi is a friend of mine and he’s doing a very good job. Nothing easy, but he’s done a very good job,” he said as he recollected his historic address at the ‘Howdy Modi’ event in Houston last September.

He also said “we had an event in Houston, as you know. And it was a fantastic event. I was invited by Prime Minister Modi and this was a massive (event)… And it was incredible. And the prime minister could not have been more generous. We have great support from India. We have great support from Prime Minister Modi.”  The president Trump then referred to his India visit early this year in February before the Covid-19 pandemic hit the two countries. “I also, as you know, went to India just prior to the pandemic setting in because India has been hit very hard, left really about a week before that, and we had an incredible time. What we saw the people are so incredible it’s really an incredible place, an incredible country and it’s definitely big,” he said. “But you’ve got a great leader and he’s a great person,” Trump said.

Since four weeks both the Democrats and Republicans have intensified their outreach to the Indian American community, in particular in the battle ground states. A recent research by Mason in battle ground states showed that Indian Americans who traditionally vote for the Democrats are switching over to the Republican party in significant numbers because the friendship that Trump has with PM Modi and the latter’s high popularity among a large section of the community who number four million in the US, of which 2.5 million are eligible to vote. In the battleground states, they number 1.3 million as per a recent remark made by Indian Americans in the Democratic Party.