There Are A Few Reasons Why Young Black Voters Are More Conservative Than Their Parents

Very interesting how this is happening....

A survey revealed that a number of young voters are becoming more conservative than their boomer parents, according to NPR.

The survey, conducted by Pew Research, found that 7% of Black voters over age 50 identify as Republicans or lean toward conservative values, while 17% of Black voters under age 50 favor the Republican Party. The research found that as people grow older, more conservative values are adopted. With the 2024 election season underway, the conservative shift could impact Vice President Kamala Harris’ Democratic ballot.

On average, young and Black voters tend to vote Democratic. In 2020, 92% of Black voters voted for President Joe Biden, compared to only 8% who cast a vote for former President Donald Trump. However, issues such as a lack of affordable housing, climate change, and rising living costs are prompting some millennials and Gen Zers to be in limbo about which party they identify with.

Jen Iro admits that the last time she voted was for former President Barack Obama, as she is having a hard time facing the recent political culture in America — so much so that she doesn’t think she will vote in November 2024. “[Politics are] not important to me because as of right now, it seems to get worse and worse and worse, which makes me more disinterested,” the 34-year-old from Texas said.

Christopher Towler, an associate professor at California State University, Sacramento, and the principal investigator of the Black Voter Project, investigated why voters like Iro are so disconnected from politics. “Black voters know the importance of elections. They understand what it means to have representation,” Towler said.

“But at the same time, they don’t necessarily feel like they’re being represented by either side of the aisle right now.”

The 2024 Black Voter Project examined the level of young voters supporting the Republican Party. Towler found the highest percentage of Black people who want to support Trump falls in the 18- to 29-year-old cohort. Close to 22% admit they will be voting for Trump. “They’re also the least supportive of the Democratic Party,” Towler said.

One reason Towler says he sees a shift in Black Americans is in identifying with what politicians and parties claim as “wins” within their communities. As the Biden administration continues to celebrate historic feats that cater to Black voters, including lowering Black unemployment and a massive increase in Black small business loans and grants, people may not see opportunities for themselves. “I think there’s an overall sentiment that they want something to support. They really understand the importance of this moment,” he said.

“But at the same time, they’re not necessarily sure that their vote is going to change much.”

Towler also thinks another reason young voters lean on the GOP is that the Civil Rights Movement is distant history. Gen Z voters are now twice or three times removed from a civil rights generation.

Some Black conservative voters in the battleground state of Wisconsin, according to Spectrum News, have already decided that Trump will be getting their vote. David King, a former candidate for mayor of Milwaukee, says politicians have “selective amnesia” and “forget that they told us four years ago that they were going to do something for us.” “The Black community is in an abusive relationship with both parties right now, and I know I’m going to get in trouble [for] saying this, so don’t edit it,” King said.

“But they are in an abusive relationship because it’s like a person [who] abuses a woman. In public, they are so nice to you. They make you think they really love that person, and then when they get home, they abuse that person.”

However, even with that analogy, King said he had already decided he would vote for Trump, who called the city of Milwaukee “horrible” when it hosted the Republican National Convention.