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Steel defeated Democratic candidate Jay Chen, a Taiwanese American Navy reservist, in a new district that leaned toward Democrats. Steel was one of the first Korean American women elected to Congress back in 2020. Since then, she has generally stuck with her party voting for lowering taxes and tightening border security among others. 
 

The battle between Chen and Steel has been a notable one for the Asian American community. Steel has been criticized for “red-baiting,” painting Chen as a Chinese authoritarian sympathizer. Chen has received backlash for mocking Steel’s accent.    

Kate Wang is a 17-year-old ice skating talent who has placed second in the U.S. Championship Series earlier this year. She is now vying for a spot at nationals in January.

• San Francisco shoring up Pacific Islands: The San Francisco Board of Supervisors are poised to create the Pacific Islander Cultural District spanning from Visitacion Valley and Sunnydale.  It would be the 10th cultural district in the city and would help revitalize the once prominent Pacific Islander community in the area.   

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• Sixer’s Sway: Developers for the proposed new Sixer’s arena in Philadelphia have ramped up their meetings with stakeholders in nearby Chinatown. Local Chinatown associations and businesses are concerned about gentrification as well as traffic and safety. Developers claim it will bring jobs and plenty of money into the city and promise to preserve “cultural identity and sustainability.”    

• Superpowers meet for the first time: President Biden and China’s Xi Jinping met face-to-face for the first time as top leaders of their respective countries. Biden believes from the “candid” meetings that there is not an imminent threat of invasion of Taiwan. The two presidents found common ground on issues of global sustainability such as climate change and food security. 

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• Poverty Pornography?: South Korean first lady Kim Keon-hee has received backlash for a photo opp of her comforting a sick child in Cambodia. Critics compare the image to one of Audrey Hepburn and call it “poverty porn,” but defenders say the first lady was doing something good and kind.  

• Asian Hall of Fame’s newest class: Various Asian American celebrities were inducted in the Asian Hall of Fame on Saturday night. Awardees included Margaret Cho, Olympic gold medalist snowboarder Chloe Kim, actress Deepika Padukone, Panda Express co-founders Peggy and Andrew Cherng among others. 

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• Kang Daniel goes global: K-pop soloist Kang Daniel announced his “First Parade” world tour. He will start in the U.K. and Europe before going to ten cities across North America throughout March starting with Atlanta.

• Kanaye Nagasaw was born into a Japanese samurai family and helped establish California’s wine country at the start of the 20th century. 
   
• Samoan American and former Democratic presidential candidate Tulsi Gabbard will now be a Fox News contributor. 
   
• Filipino singing icon Lea Salonga joined forces with acapella group Pentatonix for a cover of “Christmas In Our Hearts” 
   
• A newly discovered tomb in Northern China has unveiled 1,500 year-old Terracotta figurines. 
   
• Talented Thai creatives ranging from chefs and designers have brought new life into Charoen Krung Road, an old road and cultural hub.