Black voters shouldn’t be taken for granted ahead of the midterms. That’s the message to Democrat leaders from organizers who are concerned the community isn’t being listened to in a year when their votes could decide key races.
According to reporting by The Hill, advocates are sharing their frustrations with a pattern where Democrats overlook black voters until it’s too late.
The scales already appear tipped in favor of the GOP, considering that Americans are having to grapple with the possibility of an imminent recession and the overturning of Roe v. Wade by the Supreme Court. Losing the Black voter base support could have catastrophic results for Democrats.
Black to the Future Action Fund principal Alicia Garza pointed out how “challenges that this country is facing, from health care to housing, to safety,” were disproportionately affecting Black people. Despite this being the case, Garza emphasized that Democratic leaders were largely focused on winning back or retaining White voters, especially White women voters.
President Joe Biden had strong support from Black voters. A recent Washington Post-Ipsos poll showed that Biden still had the highest approval rating among Black voters compared to other demographics but showed that support had dwindled considerably.
A July poll by New York Times-Sienna College also showed Black voters had grown significantly more pessimistic about the American political system’s ability to solve the nation’s problems.
