Less Than 40% of Black Voters Intend to Vote, Poll Finds

African,Woman,Holding,A,Smartphone,With,Vote,On,Screen,main,Focus

(NewsWorthy.news) – A new poll conducted by In Our Own Voice: National Black Women’s Reproductive Justice Agenda suggests that fewer than 40% of black voters are keen to vote in the November 2024 presidential election. The poll found that only 38% of black voters aged 18-39 are “almost certain” they will vote in November, in stark contrast with 59% of all polled voters saying the same. The poll also highlighted a gender divide; 56% of black female voters said they would vote compared to 63% of black male voters. When asked about the election’s importance, 48% of black voters felt the 2024 election was unimportant.

The findings raise further concerns for the Democrats regarding a key voter base that helped them win the 2020 election as black voters are also reportedly abandoning incumbent President Joe Biden in favor of former President Donald Trump in record numbers. The latest polls show that 17% of black voters would vote for Trump, more than twice the amount of those who voted for Trump in the 2016 election. Despite his controversial comments suggesting that black voters relate to him because of his mugshot, which prompted condemnation from Democrats, Trump has seen increasing popularity among black voters who feel left behind by the Biden administration that promised them more jobs.

In March 2024 Reverend Jesse Lee Peterson said black voters “could not afford” to elect Biden for another term, accusing the Democrats of abandoning those who had voted for them in the 2020 election. Peterson claimed that former President Barack Obama did not do enough to improve black employment levels with Biden as his vice president and that with Biden as president, the jobs were “wiped out” altogether.

Despite Late Millennial and Generation Z voters turning up to vote in record numbers in 2020, their enthusiasm leading up to the 2024 showdown between Trump and Biden is dwindling. Independent candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr is reportedly more favored than either Trump or Biden among young voters. On the campaign trail, Kennedy has been discussing his plans to make housing more affordable for young people with low-cost loans, one of several proposed initiatives reportedly resonating with young voters who are increasingly disillusioned with the two-party system.