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Virginia State University Compiling Black Voter Survey

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By Rosaland Tyler
Associate Editor
New Journal and Guide

If you are Black/of African descent and live in Virginia, you have until Sept. 9 to add your views to The Black Voter Survey, which Virginia State University’s John Mercer Langston Institute (JMLI) is conducting.

The survey contains about a dozen questions and is available online at 2024 Black Virginian Voters Poll (google.com). After the Sept. 9 deadline ends, the poll’s findings will be presented at the JMLI Closing Ceremony on Sept. 30, at the VSU Gateway Dining Event Center at 5:30 p.m. The event is free and open to the public.

“Black voters in Virginia remain a driving force in the political landscape across the Commonwealth,” said Dr. Wes Bellamy, chair of the VSU Department of Political Science and executive director for the John Mercer Langston Institute for Political Leadership, speaking in a recent statement on Virginia State’s website.

“This new poll aims to not only analyze the beliefs and viewpoints of Black Virginians but also use this data to help propel those voices to demand change,” Bellamy said.

This is the third time the institute has issued its “Black Virginia Voters Poll,” which aims to learn more about the opinions and viewpoints of Black Virginia Voters during an election year.

The survey is open to all Black individuals in Virginia, regardless of their political affiliations. Researchers aim to query a diverse group, in order to gain a comprehensive understanding of the community’s attitudes toward current news and events and the state of politics.

Other universities also are conducting research on the upcoming presidential election.

For example, a new Marquette Law School Poll found Vice President Kamala Harris is the choice for president of 52 percent of registered voters and former President Donald Trump is the choice of 48 percent. Among likely voters, Harris received 53 percent and Trump 47 percent, in the poll released Aug. 7. The poll also explored voter enthusiasm and preferences in congressional races.

The Marquette Law School survey was conducted July 24 to Aug. 1, 2024, interviewing 879 registered voters nationwide, with a margin of error of +/-4.1 percentage points. For likely voters, the sample size is 683 with a margin of error of +/-4.7 percentage points.

The recent New York Times/Siena College swing state polls released on Aug. 9, showed since her entry into the race, Kamala Harris leads Donald Trump by four points each in Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin among likely voters.