A new national poll found that 77% of Black women voters say they are motivated to participate in the Nov. 3 election.
The survey, conducted by the Highland Project in partnership with Brilliant Corners Research & Strategies, polled 700 African American women ahead of the midterms. It found that 92% were dissatisfied with the direction of the country, 61% considered this election more important than previous midterms and 87% said changes to voting-rights protections made them more motivated to vote.
The women indicated that they remain determined to defend and protect their families and communities this election cycle.
National pollster and Brilliant Corners President Cornell Belcher said the polling results remind him of the passion demonstrated before the 2008 presidential election, when Barack Obama was elected the first Black president.
“You see an enthusiasm and potential to (mobilize) this election that I hadn’t seen, quite frankly, since going back to the Obama era,” Belcher said.
Black voters made up 12% of all eligible voters but contributed 13% of total votes cast in both 2008 and 2012. Obama received 95% and 93% of the Black vote, respectively. The 2012 voter rate marked the first time since the Census Bureau began tracking the data in 1968 that Black voter turnout surpassed White voter turnout nationwide.
Women turned out in high numbers in 2024 with 90% of Black women voting for Kamala Harris.
Black women have suffered disproportionate job losses under Trump, losing more than 250,000 jobs between January and August 2025. While some of those jobs were recovered, Black women ended the year with a net loss of more than 110,000 jobs.
The Highland Project poll found that 21% of Black women surveyed said they were personally affected by federal layoffs.
“Trump has fired more Black people than probably anyone in the history of the United States,” Belcher told theGrio.