Voters elect against dividing Koreatown to include Bangladesh Town

KOREATOWN, LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- Preliminary results of the vote on whether Koreatown would be divided to include Bangladesh Town overwhelmingly favored the status quo Wednesday.

Among the 19,126 votes counted, 18,884 of them elected against the official recognition of a Bangladesh Town.

"What we're seeing is the rising of a community, an understanding of the strength of our collective voice and ultimately, the power of our vote," Korean American Coalition Executive Director Joon Bang said. "This is just the beginning of the Korean American community's political growth and civic involvement."

RELATED: Thousands go out to vote on whether to divide Koreatown, Little Bangladesh

Currently, Little Bangladesh is located within Koreatown - it's four city blocks on 3rd Street between Vermont and Normandie avenues.

The Bangladeshi community is expanding in Los Angeles and they've wanted a designated area, like Koreatown, to express their identity.