Former U.S. Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Ben Carson on Sunday predicted former President Trump will continue to attract African American voters because he is “not a traditional politician.”
“The reason that a lot of people in the minority community are moving toward Trump is because he’s not a traditional politician who just has his finger in the air saying which way the wind is blowing,” Carson said on NewsNation’s “The Hill Sunday.”
“When he says he’s going to do something, he does it. And you never have to wonder about what he’s thinking, he’s an open book and very clear, and he’s got a record.”
Carson, who served under Trump, touted the former president’s record by pointing to his work with historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) and prison reform.
“He walks the walk, and he talks the talk, and it makes a difference, and I think he’s going to continue to draw people, not just in the African American community, but in all communities,” he said.
Recent polling has suggested support for Trump is increasing among Black voters, a demographic that has long stood by Democrats. According to a recent polling aggregation from CNN, numbers showed Trump could garner up to a fifth of the Black vote.
President Biden and Trump’s campaigns have increased efforts to reach Black voters as multiple polls show Biden’s support among the demographic slipping ahead of November.
In an appeal to Black voters, Trump made a trip to the South Bronx last month and spoke to supporters in Detroit earlier this month. The former president also started a coalition targeting Black Americans ahead of Juneteenth, the federal holiday marking when enslaved people of African descent in Texas learned of their freedom after the Civil War, the last people to be emancipated.
Biden’s campaign, meanwhile, recently started “Black Voters for Biden-Harris,” an initiative aimed at mustering support in the Black community.
When it comes to national polling, Trump holds a razor-thin lead of 0.6 percentage points over Biden, per a polling index by Decision Desk HQ and The Hill.
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