Black voters helped Biden win Georgia in 2020. Some say it’s too risky to abandon him now

(CNN) — Alanna Morris tuned in to last month’s presidential debate hoping to watch President Joe Biden “wipe the floor” with former President Donald Trump.

Instead, the 44-year-old Atlanta cardiologist saw a candidate she hardly recognized. She turned the event off halfway through, feeling sad and concerned the president had suffered a medical event like a stroke.

That disappointment, however, hasn’t dissuaded her from her plan to vote for the president. She finds the alternative – a second Trump term – untenable.

“Don’t rock the boat unless you have a plan to get me back to shore,” she said. “Getting me to shore is making sure that Donald Trump is not in office come January 2025.”

Four years ago, Black voters saved Biden’s bid for the Democratic presidential nomination after his poor finishes in predominantly White early voting states. Now, that support within the Black community – from battleground state voters and Black leaders – serves as one of the last bulwarks against a growing number of lawmakers and donors asking him to pass the torch.

That support is seen in Georgia, which was crucial to the president’s past political success. Biden became the first Democrat to win Georgia since 1992, when he defeated Trump by less than 12,000 votes.

But repeating that victory will be a challenge. In a new memo to Democrats this week, the Biden campaign argued that its “clearest path” to winning in November runs through the so-called Blue Wall states of Michigan, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania, suggesting that Georgia – as well as other battlegrounds like Nevada, Arizona and North Carolina – aren’t as competitive.

Any path to victory for Biden in the Peach State this year will depend on the continued support of Black voters, many of whom said they would prefer to keep him, even over the opportunity to nominate Vice President Kamala Harris as the party’s first Black woman nominee. In interviews, the president’s supporters in the state shared a similar message: the stakes of this election are too high to change course now.

“I am voting for democracy, and as of right now a convicted felon is not it,” Jarita Burdette, a 42-year-old Atlanta resident, told CNN. “Biden’s our guy, that’s who I’m riding with.”

Some voters said they thought Biden was capable of leading for another four years and preferred him over a hypothetical alternative. Many expressed frustration with the attention being paid to Biden’s age and performance vs. Trump’s record and policies.

“The Democratic Party knew four years ago how old Joe Biden would be in 2024,” said Michelle Mitchell, a 69-year-old Black Atlanta resident who participated in a CNN roundtable with older voters and opposes efforts to pressure Biden to step aside. “To try to pull a stunt like this at the 11th hour is very disappointing.”

Jayla Koriyan, a 26-year-old Atlanta voter, said her vote in November is aimed at keeping Trump out of office.

She pointed to the former president’s plans to launch a massive deportation operation of migrants and criticized him for his unwillingness over the years to denounce the far-right Proud Boys or the January 6, 2021, attack on the US Capitol.

Asked if she had concerns about Biden’s age, Koriyan replied: “What are our other options?”

History of support

Multiple post-debate polls have shown that Black voters are split on whether the president should step aside or remain at the top of the Democratic ticket. A Washington Post/ABC News/Ipsos poll released this week found 47% of Black voters said Biden should continue his campaign, compared to 49% who said he should cede the nomination to someone else. A New York Times/Siena College poll found a similar split.

But the same polls suggest that the calls for Biden to cede the nomination aren’t as strong within the Black community. A recent Pew Research Center survey found that among Biden supporters, 58% of Black supporters said both Biden and Trump ought to be replaced, compared with 84% of Asian supporters, 74% of White supporters and 67% of Hispanic supporters.

Support among Black voters has long been the make or break point for Democratic politicians. In 2008, Black voters helped Barack Obama win the Democratic nomination and their high voter turnout helped him carry states like Ohio and North Carolina. In 2016, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton won the Democratic nomination thanks in large part to Black primary voters in South Carolina and other southern states.

And in 2020, Biden seemed poised for primary defeat after he placed fourth in Iowa and fifth in New Hampshire. It was his first place finish in South Carolina, fresh off the endorsement of Democratic Rep. Jim Clyburn, that turned the primary around. Biden won 61% of the Black vote, which made up 56% of the Democratic primary electorate, according to CNN exit polling.

As of Friday, more than a dozen members of Congress have called on Biden to pass the torch to a new generation. But the president’s support among the Congressional Black Caucus has remained strong publicly.

Clyburn said Friday that he’s “all in” on Biden, and that discussions about whether the president should drop out should end.

“The conversation should focus on the record of this administration, on the alternative to his election, and let Joe Biden make his own decisions about his political future,” Clyburn told NBC’s “The Today Show.” “He’s earned that right.”

What’s the alternative?

Rhonda Briggins, a 51-year-old political organizer based in Atlanta, said her main focus is defeating Trump and boosting down ballot Democratic candidates. Everything else, including calls for Biden to step aside, is a distraction.

But part of her reasoning for keeping Biden is borne out of a fear for Harris and her safety. Briggins said Harris is “more than qualified” to become president, but the thought of the vice president becoming the nominee made her nervous.

“Sexism in America is more prevalent than even racism in America, and so to be a Black woman you get both hits,” she said. “I’m afraid of so many things when we even think about that as an option for her.”

Among the names floated in the media to replace Biden if he steps aside – California Gov. Gavin Newsom and Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer among them – the most logical choice for many Biden skeptics has been Harris, who could inherit much of the campaign’s funding and infrastructure and run on his record.

Morris said that Harris would be an “obvious choice,” and she would vote for her if she were the nominee. Her concern, she said, was that independents wouldn’t.

“We saw this with Stacey Abrams here in the state of Georgia, where you had a highly competent nominee who had all the credentials,” Morris said, referring to the Democratic gubernatorial nominee in both 2018 and 2022. “She had everything. She was the full package. And she did not win.”

Some voters said they would be open to Harris and think she can do the job. But a few said they hadn’t seen enough of her over the last four years to feel confident swapping her in.

Robyn Gipson, a 29-year-old Atlanta voter who wants Biden to stay in, said she didn’t have confidence Harris could beat Trump because she hasn’t heard enough from her over the last few years.

“I feel as though Kamala, the only thing I know her for is ‘We did it Joe,’” Gipson said, referencing the viral moment when Harris called Biden to congratulate him on their 2020 victory. “It’s been four years, we haven’t seen anything.”

George Mitchell, a 78-year-old Atlanta resident who also participated in the roundtable discussion, said he would back Harris. Anyone, in his view, would be better than Trump.

“I would support my third-grade nephew,” he said. “I will support anyone that the Democrats put up there.”

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