Since Florida is in news, lets bring it into perspective to understand the overall success of Pakistani candidates, majority of whom were contesting elections for the first time.

1. All Pakistanis in a nationwide tally got more votes than Nader and Buchanan COMBINED from the entire state of Florida.

2. All Candidates in California combined got more votes than Ralph Nader in the entire State of Florida.

3. Of the three Pakistani candidates on major party slates in California *EACH* secured more votes individually in his own district that Patrick Buchanan got in the *entire* state of Florida.

4. One Pakistani Candidate in Georgia got more votes in his own district than Patrick Buchanan got in the entire State of Florida.

5. Pakistani in New Hampshire secured the highest number of votes amongst winners in his district. Even more exciting is that he is a Republican and the other two are Democrats. In other words, he was able secure more votes than the two democrats individually in what appears to be a strong democrat rally. As mentioned earlier, he is the first minority candidate to win a statewide office in New Hampshire's history. Being a Pakistani is now part of the books.

Actual Results:

1. Combined nationwide tallies of all Pakistanis: 127,418

2. One Pakistani has won the statewide office. This is a first for a Pakistani. This is a success rate of 20% amongst our community. For the first round of immigrants for a state or national office, this is a HUGE success. We have achieved this success rate by the deft of individual effort of these men. Think about it; sons of soil have managed to open doors in absence of any overall strategy, coordination and support of any kind. These men have crossed barriers with their own individual effort. It could have been better if there was a bigger strategy. More on this later. Let us savor the success for now.

3. All Pakistanis on major party tickets in California and Georgia obtained an average of 25% votes. This essentially means that they were able to tap into the natural constituency of the party and did not lose any votes on account of their own entry. All of them have small South Asian community and as such the majority votes were from other constituencies. Yet all of these candidates were facing incumbents and were successful in getting name recognition. In New Hampshire, there only a handful of Pakistani families, clearly indicating that the success is within reach, however tough the competition.

4. The wining candidate has been contacted by party leadership and has been inducted into powerful subcommittees. One in California has received telephone calls from party officials for election at the Congressional level in 2002.

5. The learning experience, coordination and knowledge bank is now brimming with confidence.

Summary:

Pakistani names for the electorate are new names. However, the impact has been outstanding. It proves one more time that Pakistanis are a winning nation. They accomplish just about everything they set their minds on. After all beating all odds is our national heritage.

This has been a good week for Pakistanis all over the world. I want to thank these men for paving the way. We are no longer standing outside the candy store. Their efforts have made all of us proud.

We now get ready for the 2002 race!

Pakistan Zindabad Pakistan Paindabad

Waseem Naik Princeton, New Jersey