Republicans see opportunity with Black voters

WASHINGTON — Donald Trump isn’t known for fostering deep connections with the Black community.

From his earliest days as a New York real estate developer, Trump has faced accusations of racist business practices. He spent years spreading the lie that Barack Obama, America’s first Black president, was ineligible to hold office. When he was president, Trump derided “[expletive] countries” in Africa, and said four congresswomen of color should go back to the “broken and crime-infested” countries they came from, ignoring the fact that all of the women are American citizens and three were born in the United States.

But as he seeks the presidency for a third time, Trump is aiming to win over an unlikely constituency: Black voters.

“Have you seen our poll numbers with African Americans and with Hispanic Americans? But I’m not that surprised because I see it, I feel it,” Trump declared during a rally in Atkinson, N.H., days before the state’s primary. “We did great in 2016, we did much better in 2020 but there is much more enthusiasm now.”

There’s little evidence that Trump is making significant inroads with Black voters, who polls show remain overwhelmingly supportive of President Biden. But even minor changes in voting patterns in critical states could shift the race in unexpected ways.

For Biden, the biggest risk isn’t a dramatic move among Black voters toward Trump. It’s that such voters — frustrated by a range of issues, including the lack of progress emerging from the 2020 racial justice movement — simply don’t show up. In some of the most narrowly divided states that could decide next year’s election, including Georgia, Pennsylvania, and Michigan, even minor shifts in turnout could sway the results.

Nationally, only 50 percent of Black adults said they approve of Biden in a December APNORC poll, down from 86 percent in July 2021. That shift represents a larger drop than among adults overall and white adults in particular. At the same time, however, only 25 percent of Black adults said they have a favorable view of Trump.