Kamala Harris returned here this week to energize Black voters.
She came with a litany of new policy proposals tailored to them and answered their questions during a town hall hosted by celebrity radio personality Charlamagne tha God. The marquee event with “The Breakfast Club” co-host, also included a separate exclusive watch party at a Black-owned speakeasy for 100 or so insiders.
But it didn’t seem to register with Detroiters outside the carefully stage-managed campaign bubble.
“She really be in and out,” said Ashey Johnson the day after Harris touched down in Detroit as she placed an order at a Caribbean restaurant on the city’s west side. Johnson hadn’t yet listened to the hour-long town hall, though she liked that she was interacting with Charlamagne and getting “more in touch with her community.”
That Harris, even after her sixth trip to the state since launching her White House run this summer, is still struggling to connect with this key constituency underscores the dual challenges she faces here in the final sprint to Election Day.
While she needs Detroit’s majority Black electorate to turn out in hopes of running up the margins in the state, polls indicate Harris’ standing among Black men is flagging compared to what Joe Biden received four years ago.Meanwhile, former President Donald Trump is looking to cut into the vice president’s lead here among Black voters, as some express fond memories about the economy during the years Donald Trump was in office.
It’s working for voters like Quaviaus Rodriguez, 45, a property manager who is voting for Trump.
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