Joe Biden promised he’d win the upcoming South Carolina primary during his opening remarks at the Democratic debate, but recent polling shows his chances of earning his first primary victory are slipping.
“I’ve worked like the devil to earn the vote in the African American community,” Biden said Tuesday in the final debate before Saturday’s voting. “I intend to win South Carolina, and I will win the African American vote here in South Carolina.”
An ABC News/Washington Post poll released this month found the former vice president’s support by black Democrats dropped from 51% to 32% from January to February.
Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, the current front-runner for the Democratic nomination, has seen his black support nearly double from 15% to 27%.
Even former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, who entered the race in November, earns 14% of black support.
In a state like South Carolina, which Biden has long told donors and reporters is his firewall, black voters make 60% of the electorate. A loss in that state would leave Biden with no clear path to winning his party’s nomination and could effectively end his third White House bid.
During Tuesday night’s debate, Biden looked to fight back against concerns that his support among minorities was slipping. During one exchange, he attacked businessman Tom Steyer for once investing in private prisons.
Steyer shot back, saying Biden authored the crime bill that put “many black and brown people in jail.”
“Not True! Johnny Come Lately!” Biden shouted back.
Biden’s lead in South Carolina has shrunk since Sanders won the first three primary contests. A recent poll from NBC/Marist has him leading by just 4 percentage points over Sanders at 23% support.
