Common On How Pete Buttigieg Can Win Over Black Voters

Common has some advice for white Democratic presidential candidates trying to increase their support among Black voters: be authentic.

The Chicago rapper was leaving LAX on Monday night (December 2) when TMZ caught up with him and asked what he thought of South Bend, Indiana Mayor Pete Buttigieg as a candidate for the White House. According to Common, the way to win over the African-American community involves transparency, honesty and authenticity.

“I think any presidential candidate’s got to be truthful and really know the issues. It’s a lot going on with Black people,” he said. “It’s a lot of things anybody in the political space can do to help. You got to spend time with people and be around people to really, like, engage and be honest. We know authenticity so I think authenticity is the most important thing.”

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When asked if being a mayor helps or hinders Buttigieg’s oppurtunity to be authentic, Common relayed that deeply knowing your constituents is key.

“Any time you serving the people you should learn about them,” he said before entering his ride.

As far as whether he’s a fan of Buttigieg’s, Common said he’d need to do more research before commenting on him specifically.

This past weekend, Mayor Buttigieg was in the Carolinas and met with students at South Carolina State University, an HBCU. 

He’s been struggling to gain support from Black voters. Currently, he’s far behind other presidential candidates, like Joe Biden and Bernie Sanders, in states like South Carolina, where a large part of the Democratic voting base is Black.