Democratic lawmaker doubts polls showing increased support for Trump among Black people: 'Something is amiss'
Rep. Jim Clyburn, D-S.C., claimed there's something wrong with polling showing former President Trump's increased popularity among Black voters during an interview published on Saturday.
"I think Joe Biden is doing exactly what he needs to do to win reelection. Something is amiss with the polling. I call your attention to the recent polls in Maryland. The African American woman [Angela Alsobrooks] running for the United States Senate nomination — the Sunday before the election, one poll had her five down, the other poll had her seven down — and she won by 13. How do you explain that? That’s 20 points," Clyburn told Politico's Ryan Lizza during the "Deep Dive" podcast.
Lizza noted a Wall Street Journal poll that found 30% of Black men said they would vote for Trump in November. He also pointed to a New York Times/Siena College poll showing 23% Black support for the former president, a large increase since 2020.
"Anybody who believes that Donald Trump will get 30% of the Black male vote or 12% of the Black female vote — I got a bridge down there on Johns Island I’ll sell you," Clyburn continued.
House Majority Whip Jim Clyburn, D-S.C., listens to DeAndrea Gist Benjamin, of South Carolina, nominee to be U.S. Circuit Judge for the Fourth Circuit, testify during her Senate Judiciary Committee confirmation hearing on Tuesday, November 15, 2022. Getty Images
BLACK VOTERS REJECTING BIDEN AS SUPPORT DWINDLES AHEAD OF 2024: ‘EVERYTHING WAS BETTER’ UNDER TRUMP
"I have no idea what’s going on with polling these days. But I do know this, the polls did not have [Jon] Ossoff, nor [Raphael] Warnock winning Georgia. And then both of them won. The polls did not have [Lucy] McBath getting 87% in that district. But she did," Clyburn said, referring to Georgia's elections.
Lizza asked Clyburn again if he was worried about Trump's gains.
"I’m going to tell you what concerns me. What concerns me is the disinformation and misinformation that’s being peddled out here. What really concerns me is a fact that for some strange reason the media are more concerned with trying to balance stories rather than report the facts. That bothers me to no end," he said.
A USA Today/Suffolk University poll released on Sunday found that support for Biden among Black voters has dropped roughly 20 percentage points since the last election in both Michigan and Pennsylvania. In Michigan, the poll found Trump has 15% of Black voters, compared to Biden at 54% of the support from Black voters.
President Joe Biden speaks during a campaign event at the Martin Luther King Recreation Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on Thursday, April 18, 2024. Getty Images
Trump received just 9% of the Black vote in Michigan in the 2020 election.
The former president gets 11% of the Black vote in Pennsylvania, according to the poll, which is up three points compared to 2020. A majority, 56%, of Black voters still prefer Biden in the state.
Black male voters in Pennsylvania and Michigan told ABC News during a recent interview that they were unenthusiastic about both candidates.
"I’ll vote, but they’re our only options. So it’s, like, which is – it’s, like, 'Hey, do you want to burn your hand in the oven or do you want to burn your hand in the toaster?" Rapper Hitman Holla told ABC.
Original article source: Democratic lawmaker doubts polls showing increased support for Trump among Black people: 'Something is amiss'