Delving into initiatives to engage young African-American males, potentially opting for abstention from casting their ballots.
The event, organized by Black Men Vote, Black Riders Vote, and other local organizations, was one of numerous nonpartisan initiatives taking place around the city to boost voter registration before a Tuesday deadline and encourage turnout prior to Election Day, particularly in communities where voter participation is typically low.
"I hope they see us riding, they look up and see Black men and women on motorcycles, and they think, 'If they can vote, maybe I should reconsider it as well,'" said Rev. Mark Kelly Tyler of the Mother Bethel AME Church, who led the biking group. "People don't think that Black bikers discuss politics, but when we gather and socialize, we do talk about the election and issues."
In a city where Democrats outnumber Republicans six-to-one and campaign signs for the vice president are ubiquitous in residential neighborhoods, the challenge for Kamala Harris is not winning, but rather ensuring that her supporters in Democratic strongholds like Philadelphia and Pittsburgh show up in sufficient numbers to counterbalance former President Trump's support in rural areas of the state.
Young Black men have been a focus of the Harris campaign in recent days. Last week, Harris presented an agenda for Black men, highlighting facets of her platform that would specifically benefit those voters, and engaged in media appearances on platforms such as the Shade Room and Charlamagne tha God.
Elected officials and nonpartisan voter engagement groups have also targeted young Black men, with concerns that a significant number may decide not to vote. Efforts have focused on emphasizing the importance of voting and eliminating barriers and misconceptions surrounding who is eligible and how to vote.
Countering apathy and misinformation
Some potential voters are more challenging to reach than others.
The Black bikers' event concluded at West Philadelphia's Container Village, a shopping center where minority-owned businesses operate out of refurbished shipping containers.
Tyjuan Harris of Custom Creations, a print shop located in the center, heard the bikes arrive but was unaware of the voting encouragement. The 42-year-old Philadelphia resident, who fit the target demographic, was unlikely to be swayed by the message.
Tyjuan Harris told CNN he had no interest in politics. He claimed to have last voted approximately 20 years ago, under the influence of his mother, and vowed never to let himself be persuaded to vote in an uninformed election again.
"I do my own thing, I make my own way," Harris said. "America will remain America, regardless of who's in the White House."
Joe Paul, executive director of Black Men Vote, emphasized that voting is not just about fulfilling a civic duty, but a means of voicing their power and impacting their communities. However, the combination of distrust in government, general disillusionment, and structural challenges such as voter ID laws and voter roll purges persists.
Since January, Black Men Vote has been engaging with target audiences in Michigan, Wisconsin, and Pennsylvania, registering over 100,000 Black men to vote. The organization concentrates on reaching out to men through places like basketball courts, gyms, churches, and radio and social media advertising, as well as partnering with barbers to act as voting advocates.
Paul dismissed the notion, as advanced by former President Barack Obama and others, that some Black men would reject Harris due to her gender or decide not to vote in the election.
"I don't see, and we're not hearing, the sort of rhetoric being amplified out there that Black men won't vote for Kamala Harris because she's a woman, or that Black men will vote for Trump more than they'll vote for Kamala Harris, or that Black men will choose to stay home rather than voting," he said. "Historic voter turnout among Black men is expected."
Engaging low propensity voters
Both parties will strive to bolster their numbers in Philadelphia, particularly with low propensity voters. In 2020, Joe Biden won the state by 80,000 votes. Ninety-two percent of Black voters in the state backed the president, including 89% of Black men and 94% of Black women, according to CNN exit polls. In Philadelphia, which is 40% Black, Biden received 81% of the vote.
While Trump managed to acquire 24,000 more votes in Philadelphia in 2020 compared to 2016, Biden surpassed former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's margins. Overall, 66% of Philadelphia's 1.1 million registered voters turned out in 2020, marking the city's highest voter turnout since 1984.
The Trump campaign believes that among low propensity voters, its best chances lie with voters who tend to be younger, less White, and less invested in politics, according to a Trump campaign official. The campaign, supported by outside organizations, seeks to tap into some voters' discontent with the current economy or direction of the country and link it to Harris.
In contrast to 2020, the Trump campaign has also directed voters towards options for casting their ballot beyond voting on Election Day in person.
"We refer to it as demystifying the process for them," the Trump campaign official said. "Demystifying where they fit into the electorate and why their voice matters, and demystifying how to actually cast a vote and how easy it is to cast a vote with all of the methods they have available to them."
In 2020, Trump expressed concerns about "unfavorable situations" occurring in Philadelphia during a debate, as members of the public were prohibited from monitoring activities in satellite election offices where voters could pre-register and submit mail ballots prior to Election Day. The authorities blocked the observers due to the fact that these locations were not classified as polling stations, and the Trump campaign had not secured approved poll watchers at that time.
The Harris campaign has highlighted its strategic advantages in the city, such as field offices targeting voters in predominantly Black communities like Germantown, strong relationships with community leaders who have extensive community ties, and outreach events held in locations like churches, barber shops, and beauty salons. The campaign aims to achieve turnout levels equal to those seen in 2020.
A senior advisor to the Harris campaign in Pennsylvania stated, "We reach the mid-60s, the situation becomes quite challenging for the opposing side. We can achieve this because we are conducting conversations in areas within the city that typically do not engage in such discussions."
Several voter engagement initiatives are focused on overcoming barriers that hinder people from casting their ballots, such as insufficient knowledge about their voting rights and voting procedures, lack of polling station access, and policies like voter ID laws and voter list purges.
Philadelphia County, which encompasses the city, has also made efforts to simplify the voting process. Although Pennsylvania does not offer in-person early voting, the city has established 11 permanent satellite election offices. Various voter engagement events, including a recent block party headlined by Philadelphia native DJ Jazzy Jeff, have taken place outside these election offices.
"Many individuals believe they are inconsequential, and my message is straightforward: Your voice still matters, your power remains," said Philadelphia Commissioner Omar Sabir.
In light of the ongoing political discussions, Tyjuan Harris, despite being a potentially influential voter due to his demographic, expressed his lack of interest in politics and stated that he had no plans to vote again.
Despite the focused efforts by organizations like Black Men Vote and political campaigns to engage low propensity voters, misconceptions about voting, distrust in government, general disillusionment, and structural challenges still persist, making it challenging to motivate potential voters like Tyjuan Harris.
