New Poll: Biden and Democrats’ Approval Improve with Black Voters in August. Black Voters Support More Action on Abortion (BLACKtrack)

Washington, D.C. | September 15 –President Biden and Democrats saw their approvals jump in HIT Strategies’ most recent BlackTrack survey of Black voters, conducted after the passage of the Inflation Reduction Act but before the student-loan forgiveness announcement. The survey reported Biden’s approval with Black voters at 78%, a 6-point jump since the July survey and his highest mark in our surveys since November 2021. Democrats in Congress saw similar gains, with their approvals increasing from 70% in July to 81% in the August survey, their highest number since September 2021.

“The rebound in support from Black voters shows many are seeing President Biden and Democrat’s legislative achievements on Black issue priorities,” said Terrance Woodbury, a founding partner at HIT Strategies. “Still, Democrats must keep telling Black voters how their legislative successes improve their lives through the midterms.”

The survey also showed Black voters support more actions to protect abortion access in the face of the Dobbs decision. For example, when asked about specific measures the Biden administration could take to protect abortion, supermajorities of Black voters supported funding abortion clinics on federal lands (67%), codifying DOJ protection for women seeking abortions (83%), creating a federal hotline to help women navigate abortion systems (85%), increasing access to emergency contraception (87%), and calling for an expansion of the Supreme Court (68%).

“The support for more aggressive actions to protect abortion access is indicative of the political and electoral support Democrats have to center reproductive rights,” said Roshni Nedungadi, a founding partner at HIT Strategies. “With recent abortion-rights inspired wins, President Biden and Democrats need to keep their foot on the gas and take more hard stances on reproductive justice.”

More Takeaways from September BlackTrack 

Black Voters and Gun-Control 

• Black voter support for significant gun-control measures has increased since the July survey 
• 81% of Black voters support a ban on assault weapons, an 8-point increase since last month 
• 94% of Black voters support universal background checks, a 9-point increase since last month 
• 83% of Black voters support a ban on high-capacity ammunition, a 7-point increase since last month 

Black Voters and Midterms 

• The number of Black voters who say they will vote in the midterm elections increased from 70% to 79% since last month 
• The largest increases in vote likelihood came from Black women (68% to 79%) and Black voters under 50 (62% to 74%) 
• The number of Black voters who believe their vote has power to effect change on the issues that matter to them increased from 55% to 64% since last month 

Black Voters and Violence 

• 62% of Black voters believe there will be post-election violence if Republicans do not win control of Congress 
• 75% of Black voters believe there will be political violence if former President Trump is arrested and charged with a crime 
• 63% of Black voters believe violence against the African American community is increasing, just 7% believe it is decreasing 

This BlackTrack survey was fielded via an online opt-in panel from August 17-21, 2022, with a margin of error of +/-3.1%. The information above represents selected data from the BlackTrack survey.

About BlackTrack
BlackTrack is HIT Strategies’ recurring monthly national survey of 1,000 Black voters ages 18+ on current social and political issues. BlackTrack tracks Black Americans’ opinions and disaggregates the data into demographic groups to understand Black voters’ full diversity. The majority of BlackTrack data is proprietary and available for subscribers. For more information on previous data or to subscribe, go to hitstrat.com/blacktrack.

About HIT Strategies  
As the only millennial and minority-owned public opinion research company, HIT Strategies maintains an unmatched cultural competence in understanding and communicating to young audiences and diverse communities like LGBTQ+ Black Americans, Latinos, Asian Americans, and Pacific Islanders.  We help our clients translate their target audience’s values, attitudes, and behaviors into real-time insights and messaging. For more information, visit hitstrat.com and follow us on social media @HITStrat.     

###