Black women didn’t vote to “save” Alabama last night. They voted to protect themselves.
When Democrat Doug Jones won Alabama’s hotly contested Senate special election on Tuesday night, observers on Twitter were quick to point one thing out: Jones’s victory was most likely due to high black turnout, particularly among black women.
Despite fears of the reduced turnout often seen in an off-cycle elections, belief that the Jones campaign made missteps in its black outreach, and concerns that voter suppression tactics in the state could reduce the number of black voters able to cast ballots, black voters made a commanding display of political power on Tuesday night, according to preliminary exit polls. In a state where African Americans usually make up one-fourth of the electorate, the initial exit polls suggested that they exceeded that turnout rate, with early numbers putting them at 30 percent of Tuesday’s electorate.
The numbers will be in flux for a while, as Dara Lind writes for Vox, but an exit poll from CNN found that 96 percent of black voters went for Jones in the election. And a demographic breakdown of exit polls published by the Washington Post went viral on Twitter, showing that black women, an estimated 17 percent of the Tuesday night electorate, supported Jones by a 98-2 margin.
Doug Jones has won Alabama. Preliminary exit polls from @PostPolls point to black voters as the force behind the upset victory. https://t.co/q9ucxlS0er http://pic.twitter.com/HXC3OsYa0u
— Post Graphics (@PostGraphics) December 13, 2017
Observers noted that the result was a powerful reminder of the power of black women’s votes. The results also come months after the Democratic Party engaged in a highly public debate about the significance of “identity politics,” with some arguing that the party was taking black women for granted as it pursued the votes of working-class white voters.
On Wednesday, Democratic National Committee Chairman Tom Perez, noted that the election was further evidence of black women being “the backbone of the Democratic Party.”
Let me be clear: We won in Alabama and Virginia because #BlackWomen led us to victory. Black women are the backbone of the Democratic Party, and we can’t take that for granted. Period.
— Tom Perez (@TomPerez) December 13, 2017
If you want to know who to thank for Doug Jones winning in Alabama - you can thank Black Women. #AlabamaSenateElection http://pic.twitter.com/8h5kfEbyJt
— UltraViolet (@UltraViolet) December 13, 2017
Alabama’s Senate race isn’t the first election this year where a strong turnout among black voters, led by black women, helped determine an election. In a performance that closely matched their 2013 behavior in the state, black women in Virginia helped keep the governor’s mansion in Democratic hands, with 91 percent of their vote going to Ralph Northam last month. They also showed the strongest support for the winning Democratic gubernatorial candidate in New Jersey. And while Hillary Clinton did not win the 2016 election, black women overwhelmingly supported her, backing her by a 94-6 margin over Donald Trump and other candidates.
On social media last night, some observers noted that black women were voting for Doug Jones in an effort to “save America,” which some critics argued puts too much of a burden on black women.
This narrative about Black voters "saving" Alabama would imply that majority of white voters--the majority of people in the state--wanted to be "saved" from Moore. They didn't. Black voters protected themselves
— Bree Newsome (@BreeNewsome) December 13, 2017
But in a state where a disproportionate level of African-Americans face rampant poverty, poor education systems, and unequal access to healthcare, the votes of black women weren’t about some altruistic mission to save America from itself. Their votes were a very real attempt to make a change that would help themselves and their families.
They were also counteracting a candidate who argued that America was last “great” when slavery was in place, responded affirmatively when asked if constitutional amendments after the 10th should be abolished, and was backed by a president who has engaged in vitriolic attacks against prominent black women while pursuing legislation that would harm them. The results outline why they were such a powerful political force that should be focused on beyond election season.
Black women are not political mules to be used every time a mediocre white candidate needs to win.
— Charlene Carruthers (@CharleneCac) December 13, 2017
No amount of verbal appreciation will do us justice. Turn over the money, resources and power, then we can talk.
Can you imagine what would be possible if the DNC and political funders actually turned over resources and support to Black organizers, Black politicos, and Black woman leaders?
— Brittany Packnett (@MsPackyetti) December 13, 2017
We can vote.
We can also lead, change, and transform nations.
Invest in black people.
Hey #DemCandidates @dccc @dscc @DemGovs, when's the meeting to discuss your partnership with & investment in Black women? 2018 is coming.
— Leah D. Daughtry (@LeahDaughtry) December 13, 2017
Signed,
Black Women #AskDougJones
Alabama’s Senate race is only the latest election in which black women made the difference. If their high levels of turnout remain surprising, it’s because we aren’t looking to them in the first place.
from Vox - All http://ift.tt/2C29vWM
Breaking News: The Alabama election is the latest example of the political power of black women - News Paper
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