By
Eli Yokley
March 9, 2022 at 6:00 am ET
President Joe Biden promised Black voters he would put a Black woman on the Supreme Court, and Morning Consult/Politico surveys show Black voters appear to be rewarding him for it.
It’s been a busy couple of weeks featuring Biden’s Supreme Court nomination, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the president’s first speech to a joint session of Congress, so it is impossible to nail down precisely what is contributing to the improvements on two key indicators for the Democrats’ chances of holding Congress this fall – or whether the improvement is permanent.
But previous surveys have shown Biden’s historic selection of a Black woman for a seat on the highest court in America had the potential to motivate Black voters. Among this portion of the electorate, which will be key to Democrats’ prospects this year, 55 percent said they’d seen, read or heard at least something about Jackson’s nomination, making it a relatively salient event. What’s more, enthusiasm could rise further as Jackson’s confirmation process plays out.
The judge for the U.S. Appeals Court for the District of Columbia Circuit continues making her way through meetings with senators ahead of confirmation hearings set to begin March 21, and support for — and opposition to — her nomination has ticked up over the past week as more Democratic and Republican voters begin to fall in line with their parties’ respective positions.
The latest Morning Consult/Politico survey was conducted March 4-6, 2022, among a representative sample of 2,005 registered U.S. voters, with an unweighted margin of error of plus or minus 2 percentage points.