By Stephanie Kelly
NEW YORK (Reuters) – Over one quarter of younger Black men say they would support Republican candidate Donald Trump in this year’s U.S. presidential election, an NAACP poll showed on Friday.
Black voters have long been the most loyal Democratic constituency, but during Democratic President Joe Biden’s term, some younger Black voters and Black men of all ages lost faith in the Democratic Party. Black voters played a large role in sending Biden to the White House in 2020, and Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris hopes to secure their support to win the Nov. 5 presidential election.
Most Black voters, 63%, plan to support Harris, compared with 13% for Trump, according to the new NAACP survey, which interviewed 1,000 registered Black voters across the U.S. from Aug. 6 to Aug. 12.
But 26% of Black men under 50 years old said they supported Trump, versus 49% who backed Harris. For Black men above 50, 77% said they supported Harris.
Sixty-seven percent of Black women said they supported Harris, while 8% said they supported Trump.
Top issues for Black voters were the economy, crime, and public safety, the survey found, with the cost of food and groceries, housing, and utilities being the biggest economic stressors. Eighty-two percent of Black men under 50 listed economic issues among the most important issues facing the country today, compared with 75% of Black women of all ages.
Voter messaging that emphasizes rights “being under attack” has the most significant chance to motivate undecided voters and younger Black men, the survey found.
(Reporting by Stephanie Kelly; Editing by Heather Timmons and Jonathan Oatis)
