According to a new Reuters poll, President Donald Trump’s approval rating doubled among black men in the past week. Their poll, conducted April 29th, put Trump’s approval among black men at 22 percent, while the poll taken in April put that figure at 11 percent. The new poll also showed that Trump experienced a similar jump in approval among black people overall, spiking from 8.9 percent on April 22 to 16.5 percent on April 29.
Some have been quick to attribute the sudden rise in approval to the recent support for the President from rapper Kanye West, who has been declaring his support for the President on Twitter.
The rapper certainly has been building something of a Republican fan base since his pro-Trump comments, though he’s still universally disliked overall. In a 2015 poll (yes, there seriously is historical political polling on Kanye), his net negative among Democrats was 47 points, but among Republicans, it was a whopping 63 points.
Republicans who’d heard that West praised the president hold an 18-point net favorable view of him compared to a 43-point net unfavorable view among those who hadn’t. Among Democrats who were aware, West’s ratings are a net negative 72, compared to a net negative 37 among those not following the story.
Clearly, Kanye’s public comments about Trump are influencing what people think of him – so perhaps they’re also influencing what some of his fans think about Trump.
While there’s no concrete proof of any “Kanye Effect,” the timing of the sudden jump in approval is interesting, though perhaps one could attribute this jump among blacks are part of a larger trend, as Trump’s approval has been on the rise overall.
Pro-Trump pundits have largely taken mixed stances on Kanye’s recent affection for Trump, with some dismissing it merely as a publicity stunt. While the majority of the rapper’s recent political postings on Twitter have expressed center-right sentiments, he also referred to Parkland student activist Emma Gonzalez as his hero (and attended the pro-gun control “March for Our Lives”).
Do you think Kanye West supporting Trump has helped his standing with African Americans? Share your thoughts with us in the comments section below!
