Moving Beyond Symbolic Representation: Black Voters & The 2020 Dem Primary

• In Event: Partisanship and Voting Among Black Americans

Abstract

As posited by Philpot and Walton (2007), Black women are often the strongest supporters of Black female candidates. However, in 2020, Black women were largely credited in the media with salvaging the presidential primary bid of now President-Elect Joe Biden over contender, and now Vice President, Kamala Harris. Using qualitative research among Black South Carolina voters and survey research among Black primary voters across U.S. Southern States, this paper will explore dimensions of support for Biden and Harris across gender and age-cohorts. Preliminary analysis suggests that support for Harris was moderated by both partisan attachment, age and gender--with higher levels of support among middle-aged Black men with high degrees of partisan attachment relative to other segments of the Black electorate.

Author

• Shakari Byerly, University of California, Los Angeles