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On November 4, just four wee days before America heads to the polls and votes for our next POTUS, Jay Z will hold a free concert in support of Secretary Clinton. The location isn’t yet announced, but it will be somewhere in Ohio.
And that’s no mistake. Ohio is a swing state, and let’s remember a fun (?) fact about American presidential politics: your vote doesn’t matter a whole lot unless you live in one of the “battleground” locales. (So much war lingo in politics. So. Much.)
Californian? Arkansan? New Yorker? Idahoan? Your state is going for the blue or the red, with or without your vote. (But, DO NOT forget that those Senate and House races matter A LOT. So show up and cast your ballot, you reliably-partisan state resident, you).
Where are these states of the swing persuasion? The usual suspects: Colorado, Florida, Iowa, Michigan, Nevada, New Hampshire, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Virginia and Wisconsin. Though this year, for the first time in my political memory, the deep red state of Texas has just been designated a “toss up.” WHOA. DANG.
So Jay Z taking his free campaign concert to the Buckeye State is defs intentional. Ohio is one of the closest calls, according to the polls. Donald Trump still holds a slight edge over Clinton, who has continued to struggle with creating enthusiasm amongst some groups of the “Obama coalition.” Perhaps most notably, Black millennials are not super pumped to show up for Clinton.
But if young black voters did come out en masse for Clinton in Ohio, that could tip the state to her column. And while it looks increasingly clear that Trump has behaved his way into unwinnable territory, it’s smart to be sure, if you’re Clinton, that you’ve covered all your bases.
So Jay Z is going with the purpose of upping the young black turnout in Ohio. Whether or not he’s successful, a whole lot of fans are going to be happy to see the mega-star. For free. Not a bad deal.
