Could black voters make the difference for Dems?

An AP story from Monday presents an interesting idea. A poll was done of 500 black voters in each state of South Carolina, Arkansas, Missouri and Indiana. Two-thirds of those responding said they were closely watching electoral politics this year and between 3/4 and 4/5 of all respondents said they intend to vote this year. The collective sigh you just heard was from Democratic strategists who are considering that November may not end up as bad as anticipated.

In South Carolina, like the South in general, politics are racially-charged. You can run whatever naive line of thinking you want, but in the states of the old Confederacy, the Democratic party is very black and the Republican Party is very white. That’s just the way it is. Hence, unprecedented black turnout in North Carolina and Virginia in 2008 helped President Barack Obama win those states — something a Democrat hasn’t done in decades.

The last time Dems did anything worthwhile around here, 12 years ago, a well-coordinated and motivated black electorate got to the polls and made it a good year for the donkeys in the Palmetto State. We’re still thinking it will be a big year for Republicans, in this state and nationally, but if there is any truth to this poll, the races in the general election could be a lot better than anticipated.