Democrats have relied on President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s coalition to control the White House and Congress for much of the past eight decades, with black voters being the most reliable bloc in the alliance.
But three recent national polls may signal big changes ahead in America’s political balance of power.
But then the latest Marist poll showed 33.5 percent of “non-whites,” including both blacks and Hispanics, were in favor of the president.
Democrat Confidence and Trepidation
Democratic strategist Robin Biro also saw a threat, telling The Epoch Times on Dec. 2 that he was initially “a little leery” of the Rasmussen numbers, until he read the polling numbers from the Marist Poll.Biro credited Trump for planting seeds with black voters and warned that the three polls “should serve as a cautionary tale to my Democratic peers to not take anything for granted in politics, be it wild celebrity endorsements, meetings, etc.—this is not your grandfather’s game of politics.”
“There has not been nearly enough said on the Democratic presidential debate stages about what we plan to do to help communities of color, and the frustrations are palpable among these communities for that,” he said.
Other Democratic campaign strategists interviewed by The Epoch Times, however, were less pessimistic about the three polls.
Jim Manley, former Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid’s (D-Nev.) communications director, told The Epoch Times that he sees nothing in the three polls to warrant a particular response from Democrats.
Republican Enthusiasm
Enthusiasm about the polls remains strong among Republicans. Jennilee Brown, vice president for operations at California-based Thomas Partners Strategies, told The Epoch Times on Dec. 2 the leftward surge among Democratic presidential candidates may account for more blacks moving to Trump.“I don’t anticipate Trump will win the majority of African American and minority support,” Brown said, “but even small gains spell trouble for the fractured Democrat field that’s moving further to the left. African American voters are no longer the furthest left among Democrats, which could be why the 2020 candidates’ economic message is overreaching with this group.”
“You can’t fall off the floor. Republican nominees have been rock-bottom for 30 years with African Americans, so any bump in those numbers makes battleground states look better for Trump,” Sheridan said.
“If Democrats nominate a Liz Warren or Pete Buttigieg, they are signing away the Obama coalition. Hillary could barely build a crowd with Jay Z and Beyonce.”
Americans for Tax Reform President Grover Norquist told The Epoch Times that conservatives have long wondered “why African American and Hispanic support for parental choice in education, church attendance, and strong pro-life views hadn’t yet translated into stronger support for Republican candidates.
“Democrats have long made it clear they vote with the teachers unions, not with parents ... not families hoping for paved streets, low crime, and good schools.”
Heritage Action Executive Director Tim Chapman told The Epoch Times “the trend line is moving in the right direction.”
“I think a lot of this is attributable to Trump’s insistence on breaking Republican orthodoxies of the last three decades,” he said.
“At the same time that he is breaking the mold on issues like sentencing reform, trade, and aid to historically black colleges and universities, he is presiding over an economy that just plain works well for minority communities.”
