Backing Barack Because He’s Black: Racially Motivated Voting in the 2008 ElectionPosted in Articles, Barack Obama, Media Archive, Politics/Public Policy, United States on 2013-04-07 06:07Z by Steven |
Backing Barack Because He’s Black: Racially Motivated Voting in the 2008 Election
Social Science Quarterly
Volume 92, Issue 2, June 2011
pages 423–446
DOI: 10.1111/j.1540-6237.2011.00776.x
Ray Block Jr., Assistant Professor of Political Science/Public Administration
University of Wisconsin, La Crosse
Objective. If racial considerations influenced the outcome of the 2008 presidential election, then how did they shape the campaign, why did race matter, and for whom were such considerations important? I hypothesize that various racial attitudes exert unique influences on voters’ support of Obama and that the effects of these attitudes differ by race.
Methods. Using a Time Magazine poll, I distinguish between “attitudes regarding Obama’s ‘Blackness’” and “opinions about race relations,” and I examine such sentiments among White and African-American respondents.
Results. Regardless of race, Obama support was highest among voters who were “comfortable” with Black candidates. However, increased optimism with racial progress had no effect on Blacks’ voting intentions, and it actually lowered Obama support among Whites.
Conclusion. The conventional wisdom is that African Americans “backed Barack because he is Black”; I demonstrate that Obama’s race mattered more to White voters than it did to Blacks.
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