Obama, Whitmer top Black Michigan Democrats' list of Biden substitutes

Black Democrats in Michigan say if President Joe Biden were for any reason not to run for reelection this year, many would like to see someone who lived in the White House before make a return.

The name Obama ring a bell? Only it's Michelle, not Barack, they're talking about.

"I would like to see Michelle Obama as president," said Ambria Harris, a 45-year-old former exotic dancer who studied political science at Oakland University and lives in Southfield, referring to the lawyer, best-selling author and wife of the 44th president. "She's educated. She knows how it is to be Black in America."

A USA TODAY/Suffolk University poll of 500 Black voters in Michigan indicated that 35% of Democrats thought Michelle Obama would make a great president in the unlikely event Biden, the presumptive nominee for reelection, wouldn't run. She slightly outdistanced Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, who got support from 33%, though given the overall poll's margin of error of plus or minus 4.4 percentage points, it's really more like a tie.

Vice President Kamala Harris, a Black woman like Obama, got slightly more than 13%. California Gov. Gavin Newsom and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton each got just over 6%.

"There's a wealth of options. If he so chooses not to run, we have a plethora of options," said Lucell Trammer, 43, of West Bloomfield who runs an information technology consulting business. "Michelle Obama is wonderful ... She'd be a great option, yes." He also noted he would be happy to support Harris. As for Whitmer, he called her "phenomenal."

"I would vote for her in a heartbeat, no questions asked," he said.

Trammer also noted correctly that Michelle Obama has made it clear she has no intention of running for president, at least not this year. As for her husband, the two-term former Democratic president is barred by the 22nd Amendment. Whitmer, too, has said she's not interested in a run this year and is serving as a co-chair of the campaign for Biden and Harris.

And Biden has shown no indications of stepping aside ahead of the August convention in Chicago even though he has lagged or been tied with former President Donald Trump in some key swing state polls, including in Michigan, amid low job approval numbers, concern about inflation and questions about his age (81) and mental acuity. Trump, despite turning 78 on Friday, hasn't been hit with the same concerns by his supporters, even though Democrats have worked to point out his own gaffes on the campaign trail.

The support for Michelle Obama, meanwhile, isn't complete. Chavez Clemons, a 32-year-old Detroiter, said while Whitmer has "made Michigan a place I do not want to leave" and would support her entirely, he's not as sure about the former first lady.

"I’d have to see what she’s about," he said.

Contact Todd Spangler: tspangler@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter@tsspangler.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Obama, Whitmer top Black Michigan Democrats' list of Biden substitutes