Black men can swing Georgia for Donald Trump, thanks to rappers Lil Wayne and Snoop Dogg

Vice President Kamala Harris, the first black woman to run for the White House, is still poised to win an overwhelming majority of black votes both nationally and in Georgia. But a swing of 1 or 2 percentage points in Georgia (a state where more than 1.5 million black men live) could tip the scales in Trump’s favor.

Democrats have long dominated black votes: Barack Obama won 95 percent nationally in 2008 and Joe Biden won 92 percent in 2020, according to the Pew Research Center.

But since 2016, this hold has been slipping as Trump has made small gains in society. A. New York Times/Siena survey The report, released this month, shows that Harris received only 78 percent support among black voters, compared to 15 percent for Trump.

While 20 percent of black men support Trump, 83 percent of black women support Harris.

The polls set off alarm bells for Harris’ campaign, prompting the campaign’s efforts to reach black men.

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At the Black Entertainment Television Hip Hop Awards last week, Harris made a pitch to young black voters in a pre-recorded interview with rappers Fat Joe and Too Short. He also interviewed black radio host and TV star Charlamagne tha God and podcast host-turned-NBA players Stephen Jackson and Matt Barnes. All the Smoke. Last week, the Harris campaign also released policies targeting black men.

Whether it is too little or too late remains to be seen. Commentators think Harris’ turn as a tough-on-crime prosecutor could be problematic for some black men. Others point to kitchen-table issues like inflation and Trump’s economic past at play.

All of these were dismissed as “excuses” this month by Obama, who accused black men of sexism for their lack of enthusiasm for Harris.

“Part of this makes me think: you don’t feel like the idea of ​​a woman being president, and you find other alternatives or other reasons for it,” Obama said. “You are considering not sitting down, or even supporting someone who has insulted you in the past.”

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The idea of ​​black people voting for Trump is anathema to many Democrats, who point to his racist rhetoric about Haitians and Mexicans and his checkered history with New York’s black community. This dates back to 1989, when Trump took out newspaper ads calling for the death penalty for the Central Park Five, a group of black and Hispanic teenagers wrongly convicted of raping and assaulting a white woman in Central Park.

But this history may not be that important to young black men; A September survey from the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People shows: One in four black men under 50 Support Trump.

While Harris’s campaign targeted black women with events at various elite black sororities, Trump doubled down on his effort to reach young black men by inviting black and Latino rappers to his MAGA rallies. These include appearances by Sheff G and Sleepy Hallow, two rappers facing felony charges in New York, at a rally in the Bronx in May.

Trump has also reached out to influencers like 24-year-old Adin Ross, who asked Trump in August about Young Thug’s trial, which is currently being broadcast live in Georgia.

“I’ve heard of you. I heard from others that he was treated unfairly. That’s why he needs to be treated fairly,” he said, and with 14 days left before the election, Trump has not yet been able to overcome this claim.

Sarah Smiles Persinger is a former employee Age Journalist and editor at the Center for United States Studies.

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