WASHINGTON - With their Senate majority imperiled, Democrats are trying to mobilize blacks outraged by the shooting in Ferguson, Mo., to help them retain control of at least one chamber of Congress for President Barack Obama's final two years in office.
In black churches and on black talk radio, civic leaders have begun invoking the death of Michael Brown in Ferguson, along with conservative calls to impeach Obama, as they urge black voters to channel their anger by voting Democratic in the midterm elections, in which minority turnout is typically lower.
The Ferguson effect
"Ferguson has made it crystal clear to the African-American community and others that we've got to go to the polls," said Rep. John Lewis, D-Ga., a civil rights leader. "You participate and vote, and you can have some control over what happens to your child and your country."
The push is an attempt to counter Republicans' many advantages in this year's races, including polls that show Republican voters are much more engaged in the elections at this point - an important predictor of turnout.
Lewis is headlining efforts to mobilize black voters in several states with competitive Senate races, including Arkansas, Louisiana and North Carolina.
The drive is being organized by the Congressional Black Caucus, in coordination with the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee. Other steps, such as recruiting NBA players to help register blacks to vote, are also underway.
Tough fight for votes
Democrats always seek to increase black turnout, but that they are taking such aggressive steps to rally their most loyal constituency reflects the increasingly difficult landscape they face.
In recent weeks, seats in Colorado, Iowa and New Hampshire, once expected to tilt toward the Democrats, have become more competitive.
Obama's approval rating has tumbled below 40 percent in states with some of the most competitive races, and Republicans seem assured to win at least three of the six seats they need to take back the Senate.
Polls show blacks are three times as likely to say the shooting of Brown, an unarmed black 18-year-old, by a white Ferguson police officer was not justified. With this in mind, leading black officials are moving to seize the aftermath of the shooting and subsequent protests to increase black political participation.
"If there was as much marching at high noon on Election Day, we would not have to march at midnight," said Rep. James Clyburn of South Carolina, the third-ranking House Democrat, alluding to the late-night protests in Ferguson.
Source: Top Stories - Google News - http://ift.tt/Y2dG1g
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