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Biden’s support among swing-state Black voters has cooled significantly compared to 2020.
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Still, he has retained majority black support in must-win Michigan and Pennsylvania, according to new polls.
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Trump hopes to win over more black voters, but he does not benefit from Biden’s weaker numbers.
Former President Donald Trump is trying to limit President Joe Biden’s support among Black voters this fall, but new swing-state polls show the former president still has a long way to go.
That does not mean that Biden currently dominates among this critical group.
Ahead of November, Biden is struggling to recreate the electoral coalition — anchored by overwhelming support among Black voters — that sent him to the White House in 2020.
The latest USAToday/Suffolk University poll of black voters in Michigan shows Biden leading Trump 54.4% to 15.2%, with 8% of respondents choosing independent Robert F. Kennedy Jr., 6.2 % of respondents supporting the independent Cornel West, and 1% of respondents. respondents supporting Green Party candidate Jill Stein. That same poll found that 13.8% of black respondents were undecided.
A similar story played out in Pennsylvania, where black voters in that state chose Biden over Trump by 56.2% to 10.8%, with 7.6% of respondents choosing West, 7.4% of respondents for Kennedy Jr. and 1% of respondents for Stein. And 13.8% of black respondents were undecided, mirroring the Michigan survey.
Black voters in both Michigan and Pennsylvania supported Biden over Trump by a whopping 92% to 7% margin in 2020, according to exit polls.
While Biden continues to win over a majority of black voters in both states, his support among this group has softened considerably. And while Trump remains optimistic that he can win more black support, he has only marginally improved from his 2020 performance.
The swing-state polls show that one of the biggest threats to Biden’s ability to repeat his previously robust showing with black voters is the rise of third-party candidates, as well as the share of undecided voters — including voters who may sit out the election as they are not persuaded to come to the polls.
For many Black voters who are critical of Biden over the Gaza conflict or skeptical of the president’s handling of the economy, third-party candidates — as well as Trump — are potential options.
And it’s one reason the Biden campaign is ramping up its advertising and outreach in an effort to appeal to Black voters, aware that the intensity of their support in key swing states could be an X-factor in the race.
Read the original article on Business Insider
