In 2012, Black Voters Surpassed White Turnout for First Time Ever
According to a new analysis, black voters surpassed white voter turnout for the first time ever.
In spite of Republican attempts to suppress minority turnout, black voters actually voted at a higher rate than other groups, including whites.
African Americans outperformed their voter share, representing 13 percent of total votes cast in 2012 while making up 12 percent of the population — despite facing great obstacles to exercising the franchise.
A poll conducted by Hart Research poll immediately after the election reported that 22 percent of African-Americans waited 30 minutes or more to vote, compared to just 9 percent of white voters. A more thorough analysis from Massachusetts Institute of Technology confirmed that black and hispanic voters waited nearly twice as long to vote as whites. In Florida, home to the longest lines, at least 201,000 people may have been deterred from voting by the long waits.
Read more at ThinkProgress.org
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