Nia Malika says Biden campaign ‘clearly concerned’ about Black voters turnout in 2024. CNN analyst Nia-Malika Henderson has warned that President Biden’s campaign is worried about Black voters turning out to vote, and needs to figure out how to address race and racism to secure their support.
“If you look at polls, they’re at like 70, 75% in terms of their support among African Americans. They need 90% in some of these places to win. So they are hitting him with the race card and bringing up some of his darker moments in terms of characterizing African Americans,” she added.
Despite currently holding around 70-75% support among African Americans, the campaign is concerned about polls showing Donald Trump gaining ground among Black voters, with some polls indicating Trump has 15% support in Michigan and 11% in Pennsylvania.
Henderson suggests that the campaign’s reliance on Black voters means they need to increase their support to around 90% in some areas to win. The campaign has responded by labeling Trump a “racist” in a Juneteenth statement, but analysts question whether this message will resonate with voters. Some argue that the campaign needs to do more to address the concerns of Black voters and show that Biden is actively fighting for their support, rather than just relying on his current popularity.
The issue highlights the importance of engaging with Black voters and addressing issues of race and racism in the election campaign. Biden’s campaign has been criticized for not doing enough to reach out to Black voters, and some argue that this lack of engagement could cost him the election.
Henderson’s comments come as a USA Today/Suffolk University poll found that support for Biden among Black voters has dropped roughly 20 percentage points since the last election in both Michigan and Pennsylvania. In Michigan, the poll found Trump has 15% of Black voters, compared to Biden at 54% of the support from Black voters.
Trump received just 9% of the Black vote in Michigan in the 2020 election. The former president gets 11% of the Black vote in Pennsylvania, according to the poll, which is up three points compared to 2020. A majority, 56%, of Black voters still prefer Biden in the state.
The poll’s findings suggest that Biden’s campaign needs to do more to secure the support of Black voters, who are a crucial demographic for the president’s reelection bid. Henderson’s comments highlight the need for the campaign to address issues of race and racism head-on, rather than relying on assumptions about Black voters’ support.
The issue is further complicated by the fact that some Black voters are skeptical of Biden’s commitment to their community. Despite his popularity among Black voters, some argue that Biden has not done enough to address issues such as police brutality, economic inequality, and voting rights. Trump’s campaign has sought to capitalize on this skepticism, with the former president claiming that he has done more for Black Americans than any other president.
