This article is part of the Opinion Today newsletter. You can sign up here to receive the newsletter each weekday.

Virginia is the clearest example of a state that has moved to the left politically. After decades as a Republican stronghold, it has voted Democratic in every top-tier statewide race — president, senator, governor — since 2010.

But as well-known as Virginia’s transformation may be, one major cause of it hasn’t received much attention: Asian-American voters. Their numbers have boomed in recent years. Their voter turnout has also risen. And the radicalization of the Republican Party, especially on cultural and racial issues, has sent Asian-Americans voters fleeing to the Democrats.

In a new piece for Washington Monthly, Saahil Desai suggests that Virginia can serve as a model for Democrats nationwide. “Democrats’ failure to mobilize” Asian-Americans, Desai writes, “has been a major missed opportunity.” Outside of Virginia, many other swing states and House districts — in California, Nevada, Arizona, North Carolina, Georgia, Florida and elsewhere — have meaningful Asian-American populations.