During an interview hosted by the National Association of Black Journalists in Philadelphia on Tuesday, Vice President Kamala Harris vowed to “earn” the Black male vote this November.
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“I think it’s very important to not operate from the assumption that Black men are in anybody’s pocket,” Harris said during the discussion. “Black men are like any other voting group. You gotta earn their vote, so I’m working to earn the vote, not assuming I’m gonna have it because I’m Black but because of the policies and the perspectives I have.”
The newest NYT/Siena poll found that 17 per cent of all Black voters were backing her opponent Donald Trump, with 9 per cent undecided. A NAACP poll also found that one in four Black men under 50 plan on supporting Trump as well — a stark contrast to 2020 when President Joe Biden garnered 92 per cent of the Black vote according to Pew Research.
However, there remains some skepticism from Black men that may stop them for voting for Harris in the election. Historian and educator Dr. Walter Greason told The Root that the resentment of Black women plays a role in this decision.
“As Moya Bailey explained, misogynoir — the specific hostility that Black women face around the world — has too often caused Black men to undermine Black women in leadership,” Greason explained. “We are long overdue in overcoming this tragic legacy.”
When asked about the Black men who supported Trump over Harris, the professor was more stern in his condemnation: “Only the most greedy and shiftless excuses for Black men support conservatives,” Greason stated.
However, Black men aren’t a monolith, and Black people overall possess an oppressive history when it comes to voting, said Democratic political advisor Antjuan Seawright, who addressed the complexity of the Black vote as it pertains to Black men specifically.
“I think that traditionally Black people have been pro value anti-institution—and I think that is certainly applicable with Vice President Harris and Black men,” he stated. “I think part of it is that Black men are still being fed misinformation and disinformation and lies [which] can have her being perceived as something she’s not.”
Seawright realizes that the overall dissatisfaction of Black men with the American machine is also a factor in their lack of support for Harris.
“The wheels of progress in some minds have turned very slow,” he continued. “The pace of progress has been slower in the eyes of some than it has been for others—and I think it’s unleashing a sense of frustration from some Black men. There are 34.4 million eligible Black voters in this election, that’s a 7% increase from the 2020 election. We have staying power in this election—so Black men, who really is going to represent your interest better?”
When asked about Black men not backing the VP, political commentator and disinformation Reecie Colbert said she believes it’s not that simple. She recently appeared on C-SPAN to combat the misconceptions about Harris and the Democratic party. Colbert said assuming Black men flat-out don’t support Harris is an unfair statement.
“I don’t know if Black men are apprehensive about supporting Vice President Kamala Harris I think they want to know more just like any other voting demographic,” she told The Root.
“They want their votes to be earned, they want their issues to be addressed and I think the VP is making an effort to do that. I think the more the hold outs hear from Harris, the more confident they will be that she actually has the tools and the plan that will make their lives better off than Donald Trump and his Project 2025.”
Colbert also cited a statistic proving Black male voters are more engaged than what the mainstream suggests. “Black men are the second highest Democratic and Vice President Kamala Harris-supporting demographic,” she said. “There [being] unique issues with Black men is a narrative tries to drive a wedge between Black women and Black men and give a false sense that Trump is doing better with Black men than he really is.”
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