With national voting rights legislation stalled, Black leaders are watching to see what President Biden does next. Activists say the country is in a "state of emergency" when it comes to voting laws.

Transcript

LULU GARCIA-NAVARRO, HOST:

During the 2020 election, Joe Biden promised Black voters that he would prioritize their communities if they propelled him and Democrats to power in Washington. Now, as Black leaders and activists are pushing for federal action to protect voting rights, some worry about the electoral consequences if Black voters don't feel that President Biden and Democrats have delivered for them. NPR's Juana Summers reports.

JUANA SUMMERS, BYLINE: When Joe Biden delivered his victory speech, he singled out one group of voters as key to his success.

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PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN: And especially those moments when this campaign was at its lowest ebb, the African American community stood up again for me.

SUMMERS: Black voters overwhelmingly and reliably support Democratic candidates. But year after year, Black leaders say that Democratic politicians court their vote, promise systemic change and then fail to follow through. As a candidate, Biden named systemic racism as one of the major crises facing the nation. He promised Black voters things would be different.

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BIDEN: You've always had my back. And I'll have yours.

SUMMERS: But six months after Biden was sworn into office, some Black leaders say they worry that a familiar pattern could play out again.

LATOSHA BROWN: Oftentimes when we're engaged in this process, it's a sense of urgency of what we need when there's an election. But then once there's a result, it seems that our issues are always put to the back burner.

SUMMERS: That's LaTosha Brown of Black Voters Matter. Groups like hers have been pushing the White House to fight more forcefully to protect voting rights as Republicans have passed a wave of laws at the state level that will make it more difficult to vote, especially for Black people and Latinos. Biden has warned that these Republican efforts are the most significant test of American democracy. But activists say there is a contrast between the urgency of Biden's language and his opposition to changing procedural rules so the bills could pass with a simple majority.

CLIFF ALBRIGHT: You can't say all of that and then say, oh, but by the way, that filibuster is more important. You know, I mean, that's not having our back.

SUMMERS: That's Cliff Albright of Black Voters Matter. But what it means to have the back of Black America and what political issues are key to Black voters changes depending on who you talk to. Black leaders and activists pointed to Biden's investments in historically Black colleges, the increase in the child tax credit intended to dramatically reduce childhood poverty, as well as the racial diversity of Biden's administration. Marc Morial is the president of the National Urban League.

MARC MORIAL: We want a more diverse judiciary. We want economic policies that close the wealth gap. We have a range of priorities. These are top-level priorities, no doubt, particularly voting. But, you know, it's not about, OK, if we get voting, then we'll just pack up our bags and go to sleep. The reason we want voting is because it empowers all of the other issues.

SUMMERS: Morial was among the civil rights leaders who met with the president at the White House last month, and so was the Reverend Al Sharpton. He raised potential electoral consequences with the president.

AL SHARPTON: The question of police reform, the George Floyd bill, the fact that there is no movement there and the absolute threat to our voting rights means that, yes, I know you've only been there six months, but you're going to get to eight, nine months and go to the midterm election. And Black voters are going to say, we came out in historic numbers. What have we got?

SUMMERS: Cedric Richmond is a senior adviser to the president and director of the Office of Public Engagement at the White House. He says he believes the administration has a strong track record to run on.

CEDRIC RICHMOND: He's been pretty intentional about making sure that everything we do has a racial equity component to it.

SUMMERS: That's something Biden promised would be a focus of the whole federal government, starting with his first day in office. Richmond said the administration believes there is a path to passing a federal voting bill, but he didn't detail what that might look like. Biden and Vice President Harris met with Democratic congressional leaders on Friday to discuss trying to pass narrower voting rights legislation.

RICHMOND: The president has been in the Senate. He has renewed a Voting Rights Act before. He knows what to do, how to do it, when to do it.

SUMMERS: But Black activists say that for voting rights, the moment to act is now. Juana Summers, NPR News. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.