A new report in The New York Times is shedding light on how Black voters really feel about Vice President Kamala Harris leading the Democratic Party to victory days after President Joe Biden bowed out of the race Sunday.
Michael Kearney Jr., a community organizer from Charleston, S.C., acknowledges that he’s not thrilled about Kamala Harris’s background as a prosecutor. However, when President Biden withdrew from the presidential race and endorsed her as his replacement, Kearney put his reservations aside and decided to support her financially.
“I’m all the way in,” Mr. Kearney, who said he sent $20 to Ms. Harris’s campaign this week, told The New York Times.
Nathan Gaines, a 43-year-old barber and Army veteran from Milwaukee, was initially leaning toward voting for Donald J. Trump, whom he affectionately refers to as “Big T.” Despite having supported Democrats in every election since Barack Obama became president, the possibility of Kamala Harris leading the ticket has made him reconsider his stance. Gaines now says he is open to at least considering her as an option.
“If Kamala steps up, that would change history,” he said. “I’d give her a shot.”
Black voters propelled Mr. Biden’s candidacy in 2020. And many remained loyal to him even after his dismal debate performance last month. But, like other Americans, their doubts about his ability As Kamala Harris becomes the leading Democratic nominee, many Black voters are approaching the November election with renewed excitement, seeing it as a chance to overcome historical barriers and elect a Black president for the third time in 16 years. However, interviews with voters nationwide reveal that this excitement is mixed with new concerns.
Some Black voters are worried about the potential for Harris to alienate certain voters in an increasingly divided political landscape. They emphasize that their support for her is not automatic; she will need to earn their votes. Even though she has been vice president for the past three and a half years, some feel she is still relatively unknown and needs to present herself more fully to the American public.
Historically, Black voters have shown strong support for Democrats since the civil rights era. In 2020, Joe Biden received support from 92 percent of Black voters. However, recent polls show a shift, with about 15 percent of Black voters now supporting Donald Trump, up from previous years. (According to the 2020 census, Black people make up 14.2 percent of the U.S. population.)
Some voters mentioned that past criticisms of Harris’s involvement in the criminal justice system, which disproportionately affects Black people, are still a concern. However, others are hopeful that she can redefine her image and address these issues on her own terms.
“I think that some of the negative press she gets from her time as attorney general gets overstated,” said Antoine Marshall, 37, an attorney from Raleigh, NC., adding that he didn’t think the criticism “‘Oh, she locked up a bunch of Black people’” captures what she really accomplished when she was a prosecutor.
Other voters said they were eager to see Ms. Harris accomplish something that Mr. Biden had struggled with: giving Mr. Trump a real challenge in a debate.
“Donald Trump is not going to mess over her like he did Joe Biden at the debate,” said Stephen Singleton, 68, a pastoral minister for the Catholic Archdiocese of Detroit.
Following Mr. Biden’s exit from the race, the groups “Win with Black Women” and “Win with Black Men” quickly organized virtual sessions to rally support for Kamala Harris, drawing tens of thousands of participants. The women’s group, a network of 4,000 Black women leaders, raised over $1.5 million, according to the Harris campaign. Roland Martin, the host of the men’s event, announced on social media that their session raised $1.3million.
“Building up the middle class will be a defining goal of my presidency,” Harris said at an event in Wisconsin Tuesday. “Because here’s the thing we all here, Wisconsin, know: When our middle class is strong, American is strong.”
