Obama and the Bradley Effect

Michael Fauntroy, Huffington Post

- We are just months away from what would be a massive international story that will reverberate for decades. Senator Barack Obama, an African American, is the favorite to be the next president of the United States. An Obama presidency immediately changes, literally and figuratively, the face America presents to the world. Winning the presidency, however, will require Obama to continue to walk a very fine racial tightrope that requires his silence on race-based issues facing the country. His fear is that there are enough White voters who will, if properly primed, get cold feet and resist the urge to vote for him. The racial reality in which Obama campaigns is unfortunate for the country because it appears that the opportunity to engage in a serious, solutions-focused discussion of America’s racial ills will be left by the roadside as the country drives toward the next inauguration. This is an important opportunity missed and one which should be lamented.

That disappointment notwithstanding, there may be some racial topics that cannot be avoided, with the Bradley Effect likely to be high on the list. The Bradley Effect refers to a phenomenon that began to emerge in the 1980s in which White voters lie to pollsters about whom they will support because they don’t want to appear to be racially biased against Black candidates. The impact of this phenomenon renders worthless the public opinion polls used to handicap some races featuring Black candidates challenging Whites.

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