https://www.washingtonpost.com/poli...ecff08-3325-11ea-a053-dc6d944ba776_story.html
Biden holds wide lead among black voters in Democratic presidential race, Post-Ipsos poll finds
Former vice president Joe Biden is far and away the favored candidate for the Democratic presidential nomination among black Americans, boosted by his personal popularity, his service in the Obama administration and perceptions that he is best equipped to defeat President Trump, according to a national
Washington Post-Ipsos poll.
Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) occupies second place in the Democratic field among African American voters, easily outdistancing the remaining candidates in the race. Sanders is leading among black voters under age 35, replicating his success with younger white voters in other national polls. Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) runs third.
The survey finds meager support for former South Bend, Ind., mayor Pete Buttigieg, who is among the leaders in polls in the predominantly white states of Iowa and New Hampshire but stands at 2 percent among Democratic black voters nationally. A lack of familiarity with him and concerns about his experience and sexual orientation appear to be contributing to his current standing. Buttigieg has said that as African Americans get to know him, he will gain more support, but the poll undercuts that assertion. He receives only 3 percent support among black voters who are familiar with him.
The results, highlighting the views of a group that historically has played a significant role in determining the outcome of the Democratic nominating contest, help to explain the enduring strength of Biden’s candidacy. Despite questions about his age, his past positions on forced school busing and his relationships with Southern segregationist senators, the poll shows that 48 percent of black Democrats favor him for the nomination — a 28-point advantage over Sanders.
Biden “is the candidate that can try to get this country back on track, because we are way out of control,” said Eula Woodberry, a retired school district budget analyst in Dallas, where she still lives. “He’s levelheaded. I think he’s experienced, and I think he will look at the big picture. . . . He’s the type of person who can serve as the nucleus to bring people back together.”
Edward Phillips, 52, a former legal assistant who lives in New York City, called Biden a “known face,” adding, “You know he was vice president under [President Barack] Obama. You know his experience. I trust him. I believe him. I think he’s the only person among the Democrats who can defeat Trump.”
The survey, conducted by The Post and the nonpartisan research firm Ipsos, is one of the most extensive studies to date of views on the 2020 campaign among black voters, who, like other minority groups, are often represented by only small samples in customary national polls. It was conducted among 1,088 non-Hispanic black adults, including 900 registered voters, drawn from a large online survey panel recruited through random sampling of U.S. households.
More than 8 in 10 African American adults say the outcome of the 2020 election is important to them, and 79 percent say it is important to them personally that Trump not win a second term, with 66 percent saying that is “extremely” important to them.
Trump performs poorly among black voters when matched against any potential Democratic nominee. He wins just 4 or 5 percent of black voters when tested against eight Democratic candidates individually. But there is a 25-point variation in the levels of support for individual Democrats in these hypothetical contests against the president, an early measure of which candidates could more easily consolidate black support and who might struggle to turn out black voters in November.
In the competition for the Democratic nomination, Sanders is at 20 percent among black Democrats, followed by Warren at 9 percent. Buttigieg’s 2 percent support ties him with wealthy businessman Tom Steyer but slightly behind Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.) and former New York mayor Mike Bloomberg at 4 percent each and the entrepreneur Andrew Yang at 3 percent.
Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), who is looking for a breakthrough in Iowa, receives less than 1 percent support among black voters, as does former Massachusetts governor Deval Patrick, the other African American candidate tested along with Booker.
When second choices are combined with first choices, Biden stands at 64 percent, Sanders at 42 percent, Warren at 28 percent and Booker at 12 percent. No other candidate rises to double digits in the combined first- and second-choice rankings of African American voters.
The Post-Ipsos survey’s large sample size illuminates the contours of Biden’s support among different subsets of the black electorate.
Age is the sharpest dividing line among black Democratic voters. Though Biden leads his rivals by more than 2 to 1 overall, he trails Sanders by 42 percent to 30 percent among black Democrats ages 18 to 34.
Sanders’s support falls to 16 percent among black Democrats ages 35 to 49, far lower than Biden’s 41 percent support in this group. Biden’s support strengthens among older Democrats, rising to 68 percent among those 65 and older.
The results, highlighting the views of a group that historically has played a significant role in determining the outcome of the Democratic nominating contest, help to explain the enduring strength of Biden’s candidacy. Despite questions about his age, his past positions on forced school busing and his relationships with Southern segregationist senators, the poll shows that 48 percent of black Democrats favor him for the nomination — a 28-point advantage over Sanders.
The Post-Ipsos poll finds black Americans are highly interested in the 2020 election, with 83 percent saying the outcome matters to them a great deal or a good amount, and 71 percent of voting-age adults saying they are “absolutely certain to vote.”
But certainty about voting dips to 61 percent among black adults with a high school diploma or less formal education, 57 percent among those with household incomes under $35,000 and 57 percent among those under age 35. All three groups typically turn out at lower rates, regardless of race or ethnicity.
Many respondents said they would be voting in November no matter what. For many, even if they weren’t spurred on by a particular candidate, they were motivated by general antipathy toward Trump.
“I’ll be voting in [the primary] and November … I would never stay home,” said Steven Mellerson, 35, a sergeant with the New York Police Department.
Gray said he worries that some of the Democratic candidates do not have “the clout or experience to be taken seriously” in a race against Trump. Still, he said he will vote in November for whomever emerges as the Democratic nominee.
“Either way it goes, whatever opponent is going up against Trump is who I’m going to vote for,” he said. “I want somebody I believe in, but I also want somebody who will get that idiot out of office.”
The Post-Ipsos survey was conducted Jan. 2-8, 2020. Overall results have a margin of sampling error of plus or minus 3.5 percentage points. The error margin is plus or minus four points among the sample of 769 Democratic-leaning registered voters.
Biden holds wide lead among black voters in Democratic presidential race, Post-Ipsos poll finds
Former vice president Joe Biden is far and away the favored candidate for the Democratic presidential nomination among black Americans, boosted by his personal popularity, his service in the Obama administration and perceptions that he is best equipped to defeat President Trump, according to a national
Washington Post-Ipsos poll.
Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) occupies second place in the Democratic field among African American voters, easily outdistancing the remaining candidates in the race. Sanders is leading among black voters under age 35, replicating his success with younger white voters in other national polls. Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) runs third.
The survey finds meager support for former South Bend, Ind., mayor Pete Buttigieg, who is among the leaders in polls in the predominantly white states of Iowa and New Hampshire but stands at 2 percent among Democratic black voters nationally. A lack of familiarity with him and concerns about his experience and sexual orientation appear to be contributing to his current standing. Buttigieg has said that as African Americans get to know him, he will gain more support, but the poll undercuts that assertion. He receives only 3 percent support among black voters who are familiar with him.
The results, highlighting the views of a group that historically has played a significant role in determining the outcome of the Democratic nominating contest, help to explain the enduring strength of Biden’s candidacy. Despite questions about his age, his past positions on forced school busing and his relationships with Southern segregationist senators, the poll shows that 48 percent of black Democrats favor him for the nomination — a 28-point advantage over Sanders.
Biden “is the candidate that can try to get this country back on track, because we are way out of control,” said Eula Woodberry, a retired school district budget analyst in Dallas, where she still lives. “He’s levelheaded. I think he’s experienced, and I think he will look at the big picture. . . . He’s the type of person who can serve as the nucleus to bring people back together.”
Edward Phillips, 52, a former legal assistant who lives in New York City, called Biden a “known face,” adding, “You know he was vice president under [President Barack] Obama. You know his experience. I trust him. I believe him. I think he’s the only person among the Democrats who can defeat Trump.”
The survey, conducted by The Post and the nonpartisan research firm Ipsos, is one of the most extensive studies to date of views on the 2020 campaign among black voters, who, like other minority groups, are often represented by only small samples in customary national polls. It was conducted among 1,088 non-Hispanic black adults, including 900 registered voters, drawn from a large online survey panel recruited through random sampling of U.S. households.
More than 8 in 10 African American adults say the outcome of the 2020 election is important to them, and 79 percent say it is important to them personally that Trump not win a second term, with 66 percent saying that is “extremely” important to them.
Trump performs poorly among black voters when matched against any potential Democratic nominee. He wins just 4 or 5 percent of black voters when tested against eight Democratic candidates individually. But there is a 25-point variation in the levels of support for individual Democrats in these hypothetical contests against the president, an early measure of which candidates could more easily consolidate black support and who might struggle to turn out black voters in November.
In the competition for the Democratic nomination, Sanders is at 20 percent among black Democrats, followed by Warren at 9 percent. Buttigieg’s 2 percent support ties him with wealthy businessman Tom Steyer but slightly behind Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.) and former New York mayor Mike Bloomberg at 4 percent each and the entrepreneur Andrew Yang at 3 percent.
Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), who is looking for a breakthrough in Iowa, receives less than 1 percent support among black voters, as does former Massachusetts governor Deval Patrick, the other African American candidate tested along with Booker.
When second choices are combined with first choices, Biden stands at 64 percent, Sanders at 42 percent, Warren at 28 percent and Booker at 12 percent. No other candidate rises to double digits in the combined first- and second-choice rankings of African American voters.
The Post-Ipsos survey’s large sample size illuminates the contours of Biden’s support among different subsets of the black electorate.
Age is the sharpest dividing line among black Democratic voters. Though Biden leads his rivals by more than 2 to 1 overall, he trails Sanders by 42 percent to 30 percent among black Democrats ages 18 to 34.
Sanders’s support falls to 16 percent among black Democrats ages 35 to 49, far lower than Biden’s 41 percent support in this group. Biden’s support strengthens among older Democrats, rising to 68 percent among those 65 and older.
The results, highlighting the views of a group that historically has played a significant role in determining the outcome of the Democratic nominating contest, help to explain the enduring strength of Biden’s candidacy. Despite questions about his age, his past positions on forced school busing and his relationships with Southern segregationist senators, the poll shows that 48 percent of black Democrats favor him for the nomination — a 28-point advantage over Sanders.
The Post-Ipsos poll finds black Americans are highly interested in the 2020 election, with 83 percent saying the outcome matters to them a great deal or a good amount, and 71 percent of voting-age adults saying they are “absolutely certain to vote.”
But certainty about voting dips to 61 percent among black adults with a high school diploma or less formal education, 57 percent among those with household incomes under $35,000 and 57 percent among those under age 35. All three groups typically turn out at lower rates, regardless of race or ethnicity.
Many respondents said they would be voting in November no matter what. For many, even if they weren’t spurred on by a particular candidate, they were motivated by general antipathy toward Trump.
“I’ll be voting in [the primary] and November … I would never stay home,” said Steven Mellerson, 35, a sergeant with the New York Police Department.
Gray said he worries that some of the Democratic candidates do not have “the clout or experience to be taken seriously” in a race against Trump. Still, he said he will vote in November for whomever emerges as the Democratic nominee.
“Either way it goes, whatever opponent is going up against Trump is who I’m going to vote for,” he said. “I want somebody I believe in, but I also want somebody who will get that idiot out of office.”
The Post-Ipsos survey was conducted Jan. 2-8, 2020. Overall results have a margin of sampling error of plus or minus 3.5 percentage points. The error margin is plus or minus four points among the sample of 769 Democratic-leaning registered voters.
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