Home  News International News The Black vote did count
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Written by Dr. Garth A. Rose
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Tuesday, 11 November 2008 |
It can safely be said that Black voters will never be taken for granted again. Now proven a critical political constituency, Black voters were pivotal in leading to Barack Obama’s victory on Tuesday, when they voted in unprecedented numbers.
In the past, although Democratic presidential candidates depended on large turnout of Black voters to secure victory, that kind of turnout never materialized. One of the reasons for this was the candidate’s doing, as in the past the Black vote was largely taken for granted. Democratic candidates like Al Gore and John Kerry simply assumed Blacks would vote for them.
In this recently concluded campaign it was different. Although Barack Obama is Black, and it was anticipated that Black voters would support him, the campaign did not take this for granted. They held rallies in predominantly Black states and cities like Miami and Orlando, Florida; Richmond, Virginia; Cleveland and Cincinnati, Ohio and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Obviously, Black voters sensed how important their votes were to the outcome of the elections, and they registered to vote and voted in record numbers. It is estimated that in South Florida some 83 percent of registered Blacks voted, and, nationally, just under 80 percent, while over 90 percent of Blacks who voted, voted for Obama.
Undoubtedly, one of the key strategies of Obama’s campaign was to use the excitement generated by the phenomenon of the first Black presidential nominee to ensure that Blacks registered and voted in overwhelming numbers. Blacks were really like a gold mine to the campaign and boosted Obama’s chances in states with large Black populations including, Florida, Ohio, North and South Carolina, Pennsylvania, Virginia and Missouri. In states that had early voting, it became apparent in the long lines that Blacks would make a difference as they easily outnumbered other ethnic groups.
The strategy was simple. If the campaign could mobilize an increasing number of Blacks to register to vote and turn out to vote in the states with large Black populations, Obama would be a strong contender in that state. The core of the strategy was to ensure Blacks voted, while not portraying Obama as ‘the Black candidate’, but one that could also mobilize white voters. Because the campaign had the organization and the cash to attract white voters while it identified and motivated Black voters, it was a tremendous success, but the task was a formidable one.
In Florida, for example over 500,000 Black registered voters did not vote in 2004. If they had voted, Kerry would have been a stronger contender in the state. In addition to those who could, but did not vote, it was discovered that hundreds of thousands who were citizens had not registered to vote. Similar situations prevailed in Virginia, North Carolina, Ohio and Missouri. These states, combined, represented 87 Electoral College votes, 33 percent of the required 270 needed to win the elections. Interestingly, these five states were instrumental to George Bush’s victory in 2000 and 2004, and the result would have been easily reversed if the Democratic candidates were able to motivate and mobilize the Black vote.
The slim margins that Bush gained in these states made it clear that a major expansion of Black votes would lead to an Obama victory, and the votes cast on Tuesday and the days before proved this was right. The fact that some 20 million African American voters voted in this election can only be summed up as astonishing!
As the elections approached, once it was determined that Obama was the Democratic candidate the campaign set out to determine the real demographic related to the Black vote, including Caribbean-Americans. John Bellows, a database professional in Obama’s campaign was reported as saying that large pockets of potential Black voters were identified in key states. “There are pretty big numbers lying around to turn out,” he said. And, turn out they did.
They turned out, it is true, because they saw the chance for the first time in their history to put a Black man in the White House, but they also turned out because they felt the candidate needed their vote. Karen Johnson, 62, of Oakland Park, Broward County said her vote was courted by the Obama campaign like “men courted me as a young gal.” She registered to vote in July. “Young men encouraged me to register, guided me through the registration, and quietly, but firmly, made sure I voted. I was even taken to and from home to vote by Obama campaign people. Oh Lord, I felt so special.”
Nathan Osburn, 44, from Liberty City, Miami-Dade, was also encouraged to vote, by the concern and attention given to him by the Obama campaign. I registered to vote from I was 21, but never voted before. But, Obama people were special. They never took my vote for granted. On three different occasions his workers came to my house and explained why I should vote for him. They showed me Obama really needed my vote.”
With Black voters proving that they are a very significant voting bloc, it is certain this bloc will never be taken for granted again. “Now politicians know that our votes can make or break presidents,” said Granville Simms, of Lauderdale Lakes. But, there is a more important implication in the large Black vote that turned out on Tuesday. Simms said, “The fact that Black folks emerged so powerfully in these elections is a message to state and federal administrations, that we must be served, and our needs – housing, health care, jobs, better schools – must be addressed. If not, as quickly as Black folks voted them in, we can vote them out.”
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