A recent poll by Black Women’s Roundtable (BWR) revealed only 15 percent of Black women are supporting California Sen. Kamala Harris in her bid for the U.S. presidency, reported Essence. Released Sunday, the poll included 1,068 Black women of various ages, economic and educational backgrounds.
The poll also revealed a disparity between the candidates supported by older and younger Black women. Older Black women ages 35 and up are supporting former Vice-President Biden in higher numbers at 25 percent, while younger Black women ages 18-34 support Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders with 18.9 percent of the vote.
Harris polled second overall despite being the only Black woman in the race, a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha, the country’s oldest Black sorority, and the only candidate to graduate from a Historically Black College and University (HBCU). She also recently proposed to invest $74.5 billion in Black businesses and higher education.
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Her current numbers are an improvement from earlier this year when Harris was polling in single digits, according to The Atlantic. During an interview during Essence Festival, Harris stated the importance of courting Black women voters.
“I think candidates have figured out that you need to speak to and hear from Black women and go there, as opposed to expecting them to come to you,” Harris said.
Black women who preferred not to respond about which candidate they are voting for were the number one group at 26 percent. This could be a direct result of the Democratic Party’s loss of trust among Black women voters, said Dr. Avis Jones-DeWeever who authored the BWR study.
“Black women, especially younger women, believe the Democratic Party must do more to regain their trust and demonstrate that they are the party that best represents their interests,” DeWeever said.
