Dear Mike,
When it comes to straight population size, it’s not hard to figure that Harris County and Dallas County are going to have the largest populations of Blacks in Texas.
With 19.3% of its population being African-American, Harris County’s estimated 2011 Black population is 806,913.
With 22.5% of its population being African-American, Dallas County’s estimated 2011 Black population is 543,603.
Dallas County’s Metroplex neighbor, Tarrant County, has an African-American population of 283,022 at a percentage of 15.3%.
We begin to see raw population numbers fall off with Bexar County and Travis County. Travis County’s percentage of African-Americans is 8.9% with the raw number being 94,619. Bexar’s percentage is smaller at 8%, but the raw number is larger at 140,492.
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| Beaumont, Texas is the county seat for Jefferson County |
But, here’s the answer to the question: The Texas county with the largest concentration of African-Americans on a percentage basis is Jefferson County at a massive 34.1%. With a raw population of 86,205 according to the 2011 census estimate, Jefferson County (Beaumont and Port Arthur) can claim to rival the Big 6 county of Travis when it comes to African-American citizens.
Jefferson County is an island of “blue” in a sea of “red”. With a composition of the old-line Caucasian Democrats and locked-in Blacks, it’s the only county in the Southeast Texas region in which Democrats hold critical seats such as County Judge and Sheriff, with a strong presence on the city councils and school boards.
Obama-Biden won Jefferson County in both 2008 and 2012. In 2012, the Democratic ticket won by 2 points – roughly the same margin of victory as 2008.
With a 2-point difference in voting base, it’s the opinion of RagingElephants.org that Jefferson County can be solidly flipped “red”! The balance of power currently seems to be at a stalemate.
It’s our view at RagingElephants.org that we should begin to concentrate on messaging in Jefferson County and see if we can put this county in the “red” column to the shock of the Democratic Party that feels that the county is firmly in their grip. You’re talking about making a shift of 5% in the voting patterns and seismic shift will take place between the parties.
As we point our resources toward this mid-sized county, and exert more concentration toward this heavy church-going community, please support our efforts. Your $10 per month financial partnership will go a long way to funding non-stop efforts to actually switch a “blue” county “red”.
Other Links:
Apostle Claver T. Kamau-Imani
The Robertson Connection for Precinct 0415 