asmPolitics-396 [Kamala Harris Divides Black Vote]

 https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/washington-secrets/harris-divides-blacks-one-third-diss-pick-now-less-likely-to-vote-for-biden

In a surprise, Joe Biden’s pick of Sen. Kamala Harris, the first black woman on a presidential ticket, has divided the black vote in a potentially damaging way.

In the latest Rasmussen Reports survey, one of the first since Biden chose Harris, a third of likely voters who were black said they are “less likely” to vote for the Democratic ticket, a third said they were “more likely” to back it, and about a third said it will either have no impact on their choice or weren’t sure.

Still, black voters have a favorable view of the California senator. Some 37% have a “very favorable” opinion of her compared to 28% of white voters.

Biden has recently made a handful of gaffes seen as damaging his effort to shore up the normally Democratic black vote. Party officials said they hoped that Harris would help Biden win the 90% of the black vote Democrats commonly get.

But the Rasmussen poll is a red flag. And it follows other recent polls by the firm that show support for President Trump.

For the month of July, Rasmussen said that black approval of Trump was 36%. Before the coronavirus crisis, black employment had hit a high, and his administration has tackled key issues in the African American community, including criminal justice reform and inner-city opportunity zones.