OPINION: By mentioning the freedom to vote, the freedom of choice and the freedom of a fair economic shot in his speech on the eve of the third anniversary of Jan. 6, Biden deftly connected Trump as a threat to democracy with the day-to-day issues voters care about.
Editor’s note: The following article is an op-ed, and the views expressed are the author’s own. Read more
Yes, democracy was a winning closing message in the 2022 midterms, but pairing that with the fact that voters have turned out across demographic and partisan lines for abortion rights since Roe was overturned and that voters are more engaged when their bank accounts are in better shape shows that the Biden campaign is aware of voters’ reality. If the campaign centers that connection, it will undoubtedly help with engaging Black and brown people, and young people, who have been peeling off from Biden at alarming rates.
While these are the very demographics that helped elect Biden with wide margins of support in 2020, recent polling from USA Today and Suffolk University shows a significant drop in support as 67% of registered Black voters support Biden, down from 87% in 2020. Additionally, 35% of registered Latino voters support Biden, and 33% of registered young people support Biden, and both of those figures have fallen behind Trump’s support.
As we are still 11 months out from election day, and a lot of people haven’t tuned in just yet, there is a lot of ground to cover, and the “democracy plus” approach may be a viable formula for 2024. It’s the balance between the existential threat and the daily challenges people are experiencing in real time that has appeal. Of course, it won’t solve all of Biden’s problems, like the ongoing bombing of Gaza and Biden’s moves to send more resources to Israel without conditions, without congressional approval and without public support. But it is a start that could set him up for the “choice election” that Democrats hope this boils down to, similar to 2020.
Juanita Tolliver is the host of Crooked Media’s “What A Day” Podcast and an MSNBC political analyst.
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