CBS NEWS/NEW YORK TIMES POLL

For release: October 27, 2010

6:30 PM EDT

African Americans Widely Support the President

October 22-26, 2010

• President Obama is widely liked among African Americans: nine in ten approve of the
job he is doing overall, and as many are satisfied with his presidency. Nine in ten are
optimistic about the next two years of his Presidency.

• As they generally do, most black voters will support Democratic candidates for Congress
in next week’s elections. Two thirds of them say that even though President Obama is
not on the ballot this year, theirs will be a vote in support of him.

• More blacks than whites are optimistic about the future, and think that life for the next
generation of Americans will be better than it is now.

Views of the President

While the President’s approval rating among Americans overall has been mixed for a few
months now, he receives nearly universal support from African Americans; 90% of them
approve of the job he is doing. Just 37% of white voters approve.

Obama’s Job Approval Rating

Blacks Whites
Approve 90% 37%
Disapprove 7 55

And 88% of African Americans approve of the job President Obama is doing handling the
economy, compared to just 33% of whites. While most say the economy is bad, more African
Americans than whites say it is in good shape now.

Obama’s Handling of the Economy

Blacks Whites
Approve 88% 33%
Disapprove 9 58

More than four in five African Americans think the President has made progress on many of the
important issues facing the country, including improving the economy and providing affordable
health care to all. Far fewer whites share those views.

Obama Made Some/A Lot of Progress on…

Blacks Whites
Improving the economy 85% 36%
Providing affordable health care 85% 40%
Ending the war in Iraq 82% 56%
The war in Afghanistan 79% 42%

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Overall, nine in ten African Americans are satisfied with the Obama Presidency so far. Just
36% of whites say the same, and nearly two in three of them are disappointed.

Feelings about Obama Presidency

Blacks Whites
Very satisfied 46% 8%
Somewhat satisfied 44 28
Somewhat disappointed 7 29
Very disappointed 3 34

And nearly nine in 10 African Americans are optimistic about the next two years with Barack
Obama as president.

Feelings about Next Two Years with Obama as President

Blacks Whites
Optimistic 89% 50%
Pessimistic 5 43

The November Elections

In 2008, Barack Obama rode a wave of support and enthusiasm from African American voters
that helped sweep him into office. 2008 exit polls show that of the 13% of voters who identified
themselves as African American, 95% voted for Barack Obama. The latest CBS News/New
York Times Poll shows that blacks overwhelmingly support Democratic candidates for Congress
this year, but not quite to the degree they supported Barack Obama in 2008.

Now, 84% of black voters say they will vote for the Democratic candidate in their district, and
just 7% will vote for the Republican. One in ten aren’t sure yet.

2010 Congressional Vote

(Among likely voters)
Blacks Whites
Republican 7% 51%
Democrat 84 36
Don’t know/depends 9 11

In contrast, more white voters say they will support the Republican candidate this year. That’s
not unusual; exit polls show that more white voters have voted Republican than Democratic in
past presidential and midterm elections.

78% of African American registered voters say they will definitely vote next week, as do 75% of
white voters.

And while he may not be on the ballot this year, many African Americans will be rallying around
the President when they vote next week. 68% of black voters say theirs will be a vote in support
of Barack Obama, while just 28% say the President won’t factor into their choice.

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 Obama a Factor in Vote Choice?
(among registered voters)
Blacks Whites
Vote for Obama 68% 17%
Vote against Obama 2 34
Obama not a factor 28 44

37% of black voters say that if the President supported a candidate, they would be more likely to
vote for him or her; 60% say it would not affect their vote.

Engaged in the Elections

Beyond vote choice, there are few differences between black and white voters in their
engagement with the campaigns this year. About half of African American likely voters say they
are more enthusiastic about voting this year compared to previous elections, and just over half
are paying a lot of attention to the campaign.

Enthusiasm About Voting

(Among likely voters)
Blacks Whites
More than usual 49% 52%
Less than usual 33 31
Same as usual 16 16

Attention to the Campaign

(Among likely voters)
Blacks Whites
A lot 55% 56%
Some 30 35
Not much/nothing 16 9

The anti-incumbent mood shared by six in ten white voters isn’t as prevalent among African
American voters. 45% of black voters think their own representative in Congress deserves re-
election, compared to just 30% of white voters.

Own Congressional Representative:

(Among registered voters)
Blacks Whites
Deserves re-election 45% 30%
Time for someone new 43 60

African Americans’ views of Congress are negative, but less so than among whites. 32% of
blacks approve of the job Congress is doing (just 9% of whites approve), and 61% of African
American voters do not think most members of Congress deserve re-election. Among white
voters, 83% think it’s time for someone new.

Most Members of Congress:

(Among registered voters)
Blacks Whites
Deserves re-election 25% 6%
Time for someone new 61 83

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The Future and Race Relations

African Americans are much more optimistic than whites when it comes to the future. 48% of
blacks think the future for the next generation of Americans will be better than life today, and
only 24% expect it will be worse. Among whites, 56% expect life for the next generation to be
worse, and just 16% think it will be better.

Future for Next Generation will be…

Blacks Whites
Better 48% 16%
Worse 24 56
Same 23 23

But African Americans are twice as likely as whites to say that white people have a better
chance of getting ahead in today’s society. Blacks and whites have expressed large differences
on this question for many years.

Better Chance of Getting Ahead in Today’s Society

Now 4/2009 12/1997
Blacks Whites Blacks Whites Blacks Whites
White people 57% 29% 51% 26% 63% 39%
Black people 0 5 1 7 1 7
Equal 39 61 44 62 30 49

And African Americans also view race relations more negatively than do whites. In this poll,
40% of blacks think race relations in the U.S. are generally good, while more, 53%, think they
are bad. That’s a more negative evaluation than blacks gave in April 2009, just after President
Obama’s first hundred days in office, and is also more negative than views of race relations
among whites.

Race Relations in the U.S. are generally:

Now 4/2009 3/2008
Blacks Whites Blacks Whites Blacks Whites
Good 40% 63% 59% 65% 42% 57%
Bad 53 32 30 21 46 34

66% of blacks think the media has been harder on Barack Obama than on other Presidents.
Among those who do, 43% say it is because of his race, and 21% say it is because people
expect too much of him.

Media Treatment of Obama Compared to Other Presidents

Blacks Whites
Harder 66% 19%
Easier 3 37
Same 28 40
__________________________________________________________________________
This poll was conducted among a random sample of 1,173 adults nationwide, interviewed by telephone October 22-
26, 2010. An oversample of African Americans was interviewed, for a total of 273 interviews with African Americans.
Phone numbers were dialed from RDD samples of both standard land-lines and cell phones. The error due to
sampling for results based on the entire sample could be plus or minus three percentage points. The sampling error
could be plus or minus six percentage points for the African American sample. The error for subgroups is higher.
This poll release conforms to the Standards of Disclosure of the National Council on Public Polls.

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CBS NEWS/NEW YORK TIMES POLL
African Americans Widely Support the President
October 21-26, 2010

q1 Do you approve or disapprove of the way Barack Obama is handling his job as President?

** TOTAL RESPONDENTS **
Total Whites Blacks Oct10a
% % % %
Approve 45 37 90 44
Disapprove 47 55 7 45
DK/NA 8 8 3 11

q2 Do you feel things in this country are generally going in the right direction or do
you feel things have pretty seriously gotten off on the wrong track?

Right direction 34 26 76 32
Wrong track 61 69 19 63
DK/NA 5 5 5 5

q3 Do you approve or disapprove of the way Barack Obama is handling the economy?

Approve 42 33 88 38
Disapprove 50 58 9 50
DK/NA 8 9 3 12

q4 Do you approve or disapprove of the way Congress is handling its job?

Approve 14 9 32 18
Disapprove 76 83 53 71
DK/NA 10 8 15 11

q5 Do you think the future of the next generation of Americans will be better, worse, or
about the same as life today?

May10c
Will be better 22 16 48 20
Worse 51 56 24 50
About the same as life today 23 23 23 25
DK/NA 4 5 5 5

q6 How would you rate the condition of the national economy these days? Is it very good,
fairly good, fairly bad, or very bad?

Oct10a
Very good 0 0 3 1
Fairly good 21 17 42 18
Fairly bad 45 46 38 43
Very bad 33 37 17 37
DK/NA 1 0 0 1

q7 Do you think the economy is getting better, getting worse, or staying about the same?

Better 25 20 56 22
Worse 28 33 16 27
Same 46 46 27 50
DK/NA 1 1 1 1

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q9 How likely is it that you will vote in the 2010 election for Congress this November —
would you say you will definitely vote, probably vote, probably not vote, or definitely
not vote in the election for Congress?

** REGISTERED VOTERS **
Total Whites Blacks Oct10a
% % % %
Definitely vote 73 75 78 74
Probably vote 18 17 13 20
Probably not vote 3 3 1 4
Definitely not vote 2 1 4 2
Already voted (vol.) 4 4 4 0
DK/NA 0 0 0 0

q10 How much attention have you been able to pay to the 2010 election campaign -- a lot,
some, not much or no attention so far?

** LIKELY VOTERS **
A lot 54 56 55 46
Some 34 35 30 36
Not much 9 7 11 15
No attention 2 2 5 3
DK/NA 1 0 0 0

q11 If the 2010 election for U.S. House of Representatives were being held today, would
you vote for the Republican candidate or the Democratic candidate in your district?

Republican 46 51 7 45
Democratic 40 36 84 37
Other (Vol.) 2 2 0 2
Won't vote (Vol.) 0 0 0 0
Depends (Vol.) 6 5 4 7
DK/NA 6 6 5 9

q12 Well as of today, do you lean more toward the Republican candidate or more toward the
Democratic candidate?

Republican 49 55 8 49
Democratic 43 38 84 40
Other (vol.) 3 2 1 2
Won't Vote (vol.) 0 0 0 0
Depends (vol.) 3 3 3 2
DK/NA 2 2 4 7

q13 Compared to previous Congressional elections, this year are you more enthusiastic
about voting than usual, or less enthusiastic?

More enthusiastic 52 52 49 50
Less enthusiastic 31 31 33 30
Same (vol.) 16 16 16 18
DK/NA 1 1 2 2

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q14 Do you think the representative in Congress from your district has performed his or
her job well enough to deserve re-election, or do you think it's time to give a new
person a chance?

** REGISTERED VOTERS **
Total Whites Blacks Sep10b
% % % %
Deserves re-election 34 30 45 34
Time for new person 58 60 43 55
Depends on candidates (vol.) 3 3 2 3
DK/NA 5 7 10 8

q15 Do you think most members of Congress have done a good enough job to deserve re-
election, or do you think it's time to give new people a chance?

Deserve re-election 8 6 25 12
Time for new people 80 83 61 78
Depends on candidates (vol.) 8 7 7 7
DK/NA 4 4 7 3

q16 Do you think of your vote for Congress this fall as a vote for Barack Obama, a vote
against Barack Obama, or don't you think of your vote this fall as being about Barack
Obama?

Vote for Obama 22 17 68 23

Vote against Obama 32 34 2 25
Obama not a factor 42 44 28 45
Won't vote (vol.) 0 1 0 0
DK/NA 4 4 2 7

q17-q22 SEPARATE RELEASE

q23 Are you generally optimistic or pessimistic about the next two years with Barack
Obama as president?

** TOTAL RESPONDENTS ** Jan10b*

Optimistic 56 50 89 62
Pessimistic 37 43 5 33
DK/NA 7 7 6 5
* “…the next three years…”

q24 In general which comes closest to your feelings about the Obama presidency so far —
Would you say you are very satisfied, somewhat satisfied, somewhat disappointed or very
disappointed?

Very satisfied 13 8 46
Somewhat satisfied 32 28 44
Somewhat disappointed 25 29 7
Very disappointed 29 34 3
DK/NA 1 1 0

q25-q41 SEPARATE RELEASE

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q42 If Barack Obama supported a candidate for political office in your area, would that
make you more likely to vote for that candidate, less likely to vote for that candidate,
or wouldn't it affect how you voted one way or another?

** REGISTERED VOTERS **
Total Whites Blacks Oct10a
% % % %
More likely 14 11 37 16
Less likely 29 28 1 27
Wouldn't affect vote 56 59 60 55
DK/NA 1 2 2 2

q43 How much progress has Barack Obama made in making health care affordable for all
Americans -- a lot, some, not much or none at all?

A lot 12 9 36
Some 35 31 49
Not much 22 25 7
None at all 25 29 6
DK/NA 6 6 2

q44 How much progress has Barack Obama made in improving the nation's economy -- a lot,
some, not much or none at all?

A lot 7 4 28
Some 35 32 57
Not much 27 30 9
None at all 28 33 5
DK/NA 3 1 1

q45 How much progress has Barack Obama made in ending the war in Iraq -- a lot, some, not
much or none at all?

A lot 22 15 48
Some 40 41 34
Not much 19 23 9
None at all 15 18 6
DK/NA 4 3 3

q46 How much progress has Barack Obama made in the war in Afghanistan -- a lot, some, not
much or none at all?

A lot 9 7 25
Some 41 35 54
Not much 27 31 12
None at all 20 23 6
DK/NA 3 3 3

q47 Compared to the way the news media have treated other presidents, have the news media
been harder on Barack Obama, easier on Barack Obama, or have they treated him the same
as other presidents?

Apr09b
Harder 25 19 66 18
Easier 32 37 3 40
The same 39 40 28 38
DK/NA 4 4 3 4

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q48 Why do you think the news media have been harder on Barack Obama than other
presidents?

** TOTAL RESPONDENTS **
Total Whites Blacks
% % %
He’s black/his race 38 34 43
People expect too much 15 14 21
Economy/lack of jobs 8 10 4
Blamed for problems from Bush 7 6 10
Media controlled by Reps 6 9 2
Don't like him(general) 4 9 2
He’s a Democrat 2 3 1
He’s new/has new ideas 2 2 2
Other 8 2 8
DK/NA 10 11 7

Q49-q82 SEPARATE RELEASE

q83 Do you think race relations in the United States are generally good or generally bad?

Apr09b
Good 61 63 40 66
Bad 33 32 53 22
DK/NA 6 5 7 12

q84 In general, who do you think has a better chance of getting ahead in today's society
— white people, black people, or do white people and black people have about an equal
chance of getting ahead?

Apr10a
White people 33 29 57 31
Black people 4 5 0 4
Equal 59 61 39 60
DK/NA 4 5 4 5

Unweighted Weighted
Total Respondents 1173
Total registered voters 1073 975
Total likely voters 1055
Effective likely voters 463

Total Whites 819 890

Total Blacks 273 145

Registered voters – Whites 751 754

Registered voters – Blacks 251 114