Lone Black Republican In US Senate Enters US Presidential Race

Tim Scott, the only black Republican in the US Senate, is now in the race to become the US President in 2024.

US Senate Republican Tim Scott

Lone black Republican in the US Senate Tim Scott has entered the 2024 US Presidential race, as per a filing with the U.S. election regulator on Friday. His candidature amounts to a long-shot bet that a message of unity and optimism can still prevail in a party where voters are ready to go up against each other. Scott often points out to his own story about being an impoverished child of a single mother and the only Black Republican in the U.S. Senate, as proof that America is still a land of promise, reported news agency Reuters.

His campaigning has a very stark difference when compared to the campaign of other leaders including Donald Trump and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis who have portrayed America as a nation that is declining and needs rescuing from a corrupt and leftist elite.

Politics are sharply divided along the racial lines in the US and Scott being a black conservative is rare. Around 92 per cent of Black voters supported US President Joe Biden in the 2020 Presidential elections and 55% of the whites supported Trump. Scott has called out Trump on multiple occasions for making racially insensitive comments and blocked several of his judicial nominees for the same. 

He describes himself to be a victim of racial prejudice however has always emphasises that the US is not a racist country.

Chances In The Presidential Race

According to Reuters's report, Scott has his work cut out before even entering the race as about only two per cent of Republicans plan to back him as per the polling averages. Over half of the Republicans plan to vote for Trump in the upcoming elections and about a fifth plan to back DeSantis who is expected to enter this race soon. However, despite all this, Scott's chances may be stronger than they appear on paper. He is popular and loved in his home state of South Carolina, which plays a vital role in the Republican nominating contest as it is only the third state to cast its ballots, reported Reuters.

Apart from being loved in his home state, he also has a strong rapport with donors. Larry Ellison, the co-founder of Oracle, has been a consistent supporter of Scott and as per people close to both, he is planning to keep supporting the Senator for the foreseeable future.

Andy Sabin, a metals magnate and Republican donor, while talking to Reuters earlier this month said that he was switching his allegiance to Scott from DeSantis amid concerns about DeSantis' electability.