PHOENIX – Low-income voters accounted for 35% of the 168 million votes cast nationwide in the 2020 presidential election, and in Arizona, that percentage was 44, according to a recent study by the Poor People’s Campaign.
The Poor People’s Campaign: A National Call for Moral Revival is a nonpartisan voter outreach drive. Its study, “Waking the Sleeping Giant: Poor and Low Income Voters in the 2020 Election,” was conducted in all 50 states and included a special focus on nine “battleground states,” including Arizona.
Arizona had more than 5 million eligible voters in 2018, according to Pew Research Center data, and nearly half had an annual household income of less than $50,000, the study found.
Low-income Arizonans cast 1.4 million votes in the 2020 general election, representing nearly 44% of the 3.4 million votes statewide. Low-income white voters accounted for 29% of the Arizona vote, and low-income Hispanic and Black voters accounted for 8.1% and 0.4%, respectively.
There was no data specific to Indigenous/Native American voters. A supplement to the study will be added next year to include more information on Native American voters, said Shailly Gupta Barnes, Poor People’s Campaign policy director.
The study cited disinterest in politics among poor and low-income voters as the reason for low voter turnout in previous general elections.
“I just want to stress it’s not apathy,” voting rights attorney Penda Hair said during a news conference discussing the study. “This report shows it is systemic factors that include a lack of discussion of issues of interest of poor people and political dialogue, a lack of candidates to run on a moral agenda and, at least as importantly, a lack of candidates to stick to that moral agenda once they get elected and fight for it with all the strength they have.”
Gupta Barnes said community organizing across the country contributed to record high voter turnout on Nov. 3, 2020.
Mass meetings, protests and educational and cultural activities created “a kind of community that I think a lot of people are craving,” Gupta Barnes said.
And because of the COVID-19 pandemic, additional measures – such as mail-in-ballots, same-day voter registration, drive-thru voting and community organization – not only made it easier for people to vote but encouraged those who hadn’t voted in previous years to cast ballots.
Arizona Mirror is part of States Newsroom, a network of news bureaus supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Arizona Mirror maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Jim Small for questions: info@azmirror.com. Follow Arizona Mirror on Facebook and Twitter.
This article appears in Oct 14-20, 2021.
A lot of people are craving? WTH is that after they starve to death and lose their jobs again?
A forensic audit should show every ballot and then we can match it to the living.
Biden’s approval is in the mid 30% range. Now where did those 85M go?
The article discusses low income voters. Alternately, we see on a daily basis here comments by low information posters. Are they deliberate trolls?, Do they watch Fux “news” (which explains why they actually know so little)? Or are they just low IQ? Perhaps scientists will one day perform a medical forensic examination as to why a segment of American voters are so unamerican?
” Perhaps scientists will one day perform a medical forensic examination as to why a segment of American voters are so unamerican? (sic)”
They’re Democrats.
Remember when we were energy independent, the border was under control, low gas prices, no inflation, low unemployment, low food prices, no empty shelves in the stores, no Americans left behind in Afghanistan …? But all of that was months ago before Biden took over.
Buyer’s remorse anyone?
Looks like Li’l WusS’ mommy left her computer on again. Bless his heart he tries so hard to put words together. Maybe one day you’ll make sense…keep trying li’l guy!
Yo Wes, the last time the US was energy independent was before Nixon was president.
You remember, when we had liberals running the country, FDR Truman JFK …Even Eisenhower was a moderate. Back when a single paycheck raised a family.
Aw, Brandy boy, Biden’s approval is at 50%, a point the former guy never reached even for a day.
You can sure tell those that want to deny the truth by all their name calling. Seems to be more convenient for them than facts.
In fact why don’t the name callers put forth some proposals? Do they even have any?
Or are they just too busy lowering the worlds temperatures?
ZERO progress in 30+ years, and you keep letting more child bearing people into the country. Something doesn’t add up in their thinking.