Obama faces 20 percent handicap because of race bias among voters lacking strong party preferences

Posted under: News Releases , Politics and Government , Research , Social Science. An online study of eligible voters around the country revealed that the preference for whites over blacks is the strongest in the least politically-partisan voters. Among these voters, race biases against Barack Obama could produce as much as a 20 percent gap in the popular vote in a contest that would otherwise be equal. "Although they may not determine the election outcome, race biases are having a strong anti-Obama effect among the least politically partisan voters,” said Anthony Greenwald , a University of Washington psychology professor who conducted the survey. "If present pre-election polling is accurate, the effect of racial attitudes will have their effect on Barack Obama's winning margin but not on the election outcome. Most recent polls show Obama in the lead. This suggests that although race biases are a "hill he has to climb, the polls indicate that he's actually climbing it,” Greenwald said.