The wheels are coming off of Kamala’s campaign. She has no one to blame but herself.
And now she is panicking after being hit with a devastating reality in this swing state.
Democrats are beginning to panic over Vice President Kamala Harris’s crumbling support among black male voters—a critical demographic that’s now slipping away.
While Harris has seen gains among certain groups, such as black women and women in general, she’s losing ground fast with black men, who feel increasingly overlooked and even disrespected by her campaign.
In Detroit, more than three dozen black residents—mostly male strategists, activists, clergy, elected officials, and voters—spoke out, telling Politico that Harris’s outreach to black men has been disastrous.
They warned that the lack of attention could prove fatal to her campaign in November.
“I am worried about turnout in Detroit. I think it’s real,” said Jamal Simmons, Harris’s former communications director, sounding the alarm on a problem the campaign seems to be ignoring.
What’s worse, black men in Detroit described Harris’s efforts as patronizing and out of touch.
Many said that when they asked how a Harris presidency would improve their lives, they were met with condescending responses that questioned their intelligence.
Harris’s campaign, they claimed, is completely missing the mark, failing to connect with poorer neighborhoods and letting key opportunities slip through the cracks.
One glaring example? When Harris failed to speak at a crucial gathering of Detroit faith leaders, instead sending Rep. Jim Clyburn in her place, it was seen as a slap in the face.
“When you come to Detroit and you don’t meet with Detroit pastors, that’s a layup that you missed hard,” said Bishop Cory Chavis of Victory Community Church.
This isn’t just a Detroit problem. Harris’s struggles with black men are being echoed across key swing states, threatening to depress voter turnout in areas where even a few thousand votes could determine the outcome.
In places like Erie County, Pennsylvania—where Biden scraped by with fewer than 1,500 votes in 2020—her campaign’s lackluster efforts are causing concern.
One black male voter in Erie made it clear why he’s now backing Donald Trump, saying Trump is “factual,” while Harris’s campaign is too focused on issues like women’s rights.
“We don’t care about LGBT rights. We don’t care about, you know, abortion rights. We’re not worried about that,” the voter said bluntly. “They don’t offer anything to the straight black male voters.”
Trump, it seems, is capitalizing on Harris’s missteps. His support among black males, though still low, has doubled since 2016.
A recent poll by the Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research found that 18% of black men now view Trump favorably, drawn to his unapologetic style and frustration over issues like immigration.
Eric Mays, a Detroit Manufacturing Systems worker, put it plainly at a gathering of black conservatives: “As they letting us go, they’re getting a busload of temporary workers—they’re all Mexican, none of them speak English. So they don’t care if we go on strike or not. We’ve been training these people to do our jobs.”
It’s a sentiment resonating with black men who feel left behind by Harris and her empty promises.
Last month, Harris tried to address the issue directly by speaking to the National Association of Black Journalists in Philadelphia, where she said, “I think it’s very important to not operate from the assumption that black men are in anybody’s pocket. Black men are like any other voting group. You’ve got to earn their vote. So I’m working to earn the vote.” But for many, it seems, that effort is coming too late.
The 2024 election is shaping up to be even closer than 2020, with polls showing a tight race between Trump and Harris. But if Harris continues to alienate black male voters, her path to victory looks increasingly narrow.
Stay tuned to Prudent Politics.
