A new poll found that Vice President Kamala Harris led former President Donald Trump with Black voters, but she has substantially less support from the voter bloc than President Biden four years ago. 

The New York Times and Siena College poll released Saturday found that 78% of Black voters said they would vote for Ms. Harris in November, compared to 15% who plan to back Mr. Trump. Though the survey shows an overwhelming difference in support for the two candidates, Ms. Harris has so far failed to garner the same level of support as Mr. Biden in 2020. 

Indeed, Mr. Biden earned over 90% of support from Black voters during his win over Mr. Trump four years ago. 

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Democrats had hoped for a repeat of that level of enthusiasm for Ms. Harris, which could prove the difference for her on Nov. 5. Both candidates are locked in a tight race with little daylight between them.

Polling aggregate Real Clear Polling’s average of the contest found that Ms. Harris holds just shy of a 2 point lead over Mr. Trump, but most polls of the presidential race fall within the margin of error, meaning that the pair are statistically tied. 

Still, she is outperforming Mr. Biden when he was still in the race against Mr. Trump. Before he dropped out in July, 74% of Black voters said they would support Mr. Biden. 

The survey found a gender gap in support. Ms. Harris earned more support from Black women, 83%, than Black men, 70%. Conversely, Mr. Trump had an edge with Black men, 20%, compared to Black women, 12%. 

On Thursday, former President Barack Obama urged more Black men to support Ms. Harris during a campaign stop in Pennsylvania. He acknowledged that Black voters are not showing the same level of support, particularly Black men, as when he ran for the White House. 

“Part of it makes me think — and I’m speaking to men directly — part of it makes me think that, well, you just aren’t feeling the idea of having a woman as president, and you’re coming up with other alternatives and other reasons for that,” he said. 

“So now you’re thinking about sitting out or even supporting somebody who has a history of degrading you? Because you think that’s a sign of strength? Because that’s what being a man is, putting women down? That’s not acceptable,” he continued.

The poll, which surveyed 589 voters between Sept. 29 and Oct. 6, found that 57% of the voters considered themselves Democrats, while 7% leaned Republican. Over a quarter of Black voters surveyed said they were independent voters. 

Black voters also have a more favorable view of Ms. Harris, with 53% responding that they had a very favorable view of her, while 70% held a very unfavorable view of Mr. Trump.