Primary in South Carolina: Joe Biden faces his first electoral test
South Carolina kicks off the Democratic primaries this Saturday, February 3, the first electoral test for the American president with the black electorate.
Democratic officials have increased their trips to South Carolina to mobilize voters, like here Joe Biden, January 28, 2024. AP - Jacquelyn Martin
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Zero suspense. The result of this election in South Carolina, the start of the Democratic primaries, is beyond doubt:
Joe Biden
is certain to win. The competition against him is purely formal. Minnesota Representative Dean Phillips is content to propose generational change. Best-selling personal development author Marianne Williamson didn't even come.
If it does not involve any suspense, this primary is not without challenges, warns our special correspondent in Charleston,
Guillaume Naudin
. The main one concerns the mobilization of an African-American electorate which supports Democrats in general, and Joe Biden in particular. Four years ago, Democratic voters in South Carolina gave him his first victory after two defeats in Iowa and New Hampshire. They had put his candidacy on the path to the White House. This is why the president wanted them to speak first. For him, it is an opportunity to show who he is fighting for, to recall the promises he believes he has kept and to raise the stakes of this election: in particular the defense of democracy.
A limited strategy?
Like four years ago, the Democratic Party's strategy essentially consists of presenting Donald Trump as a danger to democracy. “
I think it's necessary because Trump is at the head of a party that can be described as neofascist, completely undemocratic. He has clearly said on several occasions that he wanted to introduce a dictatorship in the United States
,” recalls Pierre Gervais, professor of American civilization at Sorbonne Nouvelle University, in Paris, to RFI.
Will this be enough to mobilize voters? Nothing is less sure. Faced with a black electorate that it tends to take for granted, the Democratic Party lacks proposals to respond to the strengthening of inequalities and the difficulties of access to care and housing. “
Apart from Trump and the actions of the Republicans, ultimately, the Democrats do not have their own program, which could demobilize part of the young and poor electorate
,” notes Pierre Gervais. Another handicap: Washington's unconditional support for Israel in its war against Hamas. “
This risks diverting an activist segment, particularly among young people, from the Biden candidacy
,” warns the researcher.
Also listen: Presidential election in the United States: “The challenge is the mobilization of the Democratic base”
Even though South Carolina is expected to remain in Republican hands in the November presidential election, as it has been since 1980, Joe Biden has made it clear that he views the state as an important test. Local Democratic leaders have been crisscrossing the state for weeks, in urban and rural areas, particularly to try to convince young people who are currently a little more hesitant than four years ago. Joe Biden showed up twice and Vice President Kamala Harris made one final appearance Friday before a vote in which turnout will decide the initial boost to their ticket.
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