Obama Quietly Moves to Pump Up Black Vote

Latino, black supporters helped conservative Calif. proposition pass

(NEWSER) - Barack Obama's popularity among California's minorities helped pass the state's conservative-backed gay marriage ban, Dan Walters writes in the Sacramento Bee. Blacks and Latinos—94% of whom voted for Obama—turned out in record numbers, and the majority of them supported the ban. The proposition would probably have failed with a more traditional, and more white, makeup of state voters. More»

Early voting big among African Americans

(NEWSER) - Black turnout isn’t just expected to be high this year; according to early voting records, it already is, the Wall Street Journal reports. African Americans account for 36% of early ballots in Georgia, for instance, despite making up just 29% of active voters. In 2004, blacks represented 25% of overall turnout. Yesterday, Atlanta voters stood in line for up to 90 minutes to cast their ballots. More»

Group sets out to register the poor

(NEWSER) - Nestled in the housing bill President Bush signed yesterday is an acronym Republicans don’t like one bit: ACORN. The Wall Street Journal reports that the group is among the many housing-related nonprofits the bill hands cash to, but Republicans grumble that it does more than housing. It’s also co-managing a $15.9 million voter registration campaign aimed at low-income Hispanics and African Americans–in other words, likely Democratic voters. More»

3 of 4 support him, despite racial differences

(NEWSER) - McCain may lead Obama by 10% among white voters, but three of four white supremacists say they prefer the Illinois senator, Esquire reports.

1. The Director of the White Aryan Resistance calls Obama a "black racist," but still supports him because of McCain's economic policies. He "hates the transnational corporations more than any black person."

Obama's 2008 effort gives party an edge in 2010 Senate races

(NEWSER) - Senate Democrats have a silver lining heading into the 2010 election: their party’s made huge gains in voter registration. The last time this crop of senators was on the ballot was 2004, when George W. Bush’s field operation, then the most sophisticated ever, was registering hordes of Republicans. But Barack Obama’s 2008 effort “made the 2004 Republican model look antiquated,” writes Tom Schaller on FiveThirtyEight.com . More»