US: Meet Tim Scott, the only black Republican set to join presidential race

Tim Scott, the only black Republican in the US, has officially joined the presidential race as per a filing with the US election regulator on Friday.

Scott’s game plan is to assure the people of America that the country remains a land of promise by telling his own personal story of growing up as a black to a single mom.

His campaign seems quite different from other Republican candidates including former President Donald Trump and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis who portray the US as a country that needs rescuing from a corrupt and leftist elite.

Republican US Senator Tim Scott has entered the 2024 presidential race in what amounts to a long-shot bet that a message of unity and optimism can still appeal in a party where many voters are hungry for a bare-knuckled fight https://t.co/q8ShtceWeX pic.twitter.com/f4E1SQWO5A

— Reuters (@Reuters) May 20, 2023

As a Black conservative, Scott is a rarity in a country where politics are sharply divided along racial lines. Some 92 per cent of Black voters backed Democrat Joe Biden in the 2020 presidential election, while 55 per cent of white voters backed Trump.

Scott, a Senator, did not hesitate to call out Trump during his presidential stint for his racially insensitive comments as well as blocked several of his judicial nominees for that reason.

On the other hand, the South Carolina senator has also criticised the Democrats for exploiting racial tensions for partisan gain.

At the same time as he tells the story of him being a victim of racial inequality, Scott has always maintained that America is not a racist country.

However, only about 2 per cent of Republicans plan to vote for him in the primary, according to polling averages, and his national name recognition remains low. Over half of Republicans plan to vote for Trump and about a fifth favor DeSantis, who is expected to jump into the race in the coming days.

Nevertheless, Scott’s chances might be better than they seem as he is popular among the people of his home state South Carolina, a state that is key in the Republican nominating contest as it is only the third state to cast its ballots.

With inputs from agencies

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from US: Meet Tim Scott, the only black Republican set to join presidential race