astead herndon Hello. bishop theodore myers Hello. How are you? astead herndon I’m doing well. How are you? bishop theodore myers Very good. Thank you. astead herndon It’s a beautiful church. And I’m not even inside yet, and I already know. My name’s Astead. I’m a reporter. bishop theodore myers Hi. astead herndon And I’m glad to meet you. bishop theodore myers Good to see you. You know what makes a beautiful church, though? astead herndon What makes it? bishop theodore myers Beautiful people. [laughter]

astead herndon

From The New York Times, this is “The Field.” I’m Astead Herndon in South Carolina.

clare toeniskoetter How many people fit in here? bishop theodore myers In here, we can fit about 1,400. clare toeniskoetter Wow. bishop theodore myers Now, when I built this, I didn’t have a congregation like that. But this area doesn’t have anything. And because it doesn’t, you had to build something, not for the present but for the future. Build for where you want it to go, as opposed to where it is. astead herndon Do politicians come? bishop theodore myers Yeah, they come around. astead herndon Mm-hm. clare toeniskoetter Why do you think so many politicians come to churches in South Carolina? bishop theodore myers It is the place where you can impact the most people at any given point in time. annie brown With black people? bishop theodore myers Yeah, black people. Black people generally go to church. [singing] archived recording Let us stand for the call to worship. (SINGING) Praise Him. Praise Him.

astead herndon

In South Carolina, more than 65 percent of the Democratic electorate is made up of black voters. And it’s the first primary that really represents a test of how these candidates can do among black voters nationally.

archived recording We have someone here today that we know. We’ve seen him. We know his record. He served with someone we really cared about.

astead herndon

And no candidate has staked more of their campaign on the black vote —

archived recording (david mack) Ladies and gentlemen, the next president of the United States, Joe Biden.

astead herndon

— than Joe Biden.

archived recording (joe biden) Reverend Dr. Holt, thank you for inviting me into God’s house today. I really appreciate it. Thank you, thank you, thank you.

astead herndon

And as Joe Biden has experienced these early defeats in Iowa and New Hampshire and Nevada, he’s been saying to voters, just wait till the black vote shows up. Wait till I get to South Carolina.

archived recording (joe biden) Look, this is an incredible opportunity. I want you to know, although I’ve had overwhelming support from the community my whole career, I don’t expect anything. I’m here to earn. I’m here to earn your vote. I’m here to earn your support.

astead herndon

As he’s experienced these results in the early states, it’s added a real sense of pressure on South Carolina. And if Biden doesn’t win, and win decisively, it could completely erode his chances at the Democratic nomination.

archived recording (joe biden) I don’t expect anything, but I know one thing. And this is real. The African-American community in South Carolina can make a judgment about who the next president on this stage is going to be. No, no. That’s not exaggeration. Literally, literally, you’re able to do this. Because when the African-American community decides, we’re going to move into Super Tuesday as they call it, where there’s significant African-American vote. You have —

astead herndon

The question is, is Biden right about his overwhelming support from black voters? And if he’s not, and that vote splits across candidates, what does that mean for the Democratic primary?

archived recording (joe biden) But folks, the vote is in your hands. Not a joke. You can control this outcome. I’m going to do everything in my power to earn your respect, earn your vote. astead herndon I was telling them earlier that my father’s a COGIC pastor. bishop theodore myers Oh yeah, COGIC? astead herndon Yeah, yeah. clare toeniskoetter And for us lay people, what does that mean? bishop theodore myers Church of God in Christ. astead herndon Just a different Pentecostal denomination. bishop theodore myers Both apostolic, so he’s my surrogate brother. [laughter] annie brown You’re both going to heaven. astead herndon Yeah, yeah. annie brown Is that right? bishop theodore myers No, no, no, no — we’re both already there. astead herndon Yeah, right, right. [laughter]

astead herndon

A few days ago, about two hours away from the church where Biden spoke, I went with producers Clare Toeniskoetter and Annie Brown to Temple of Faith Bible Way Church —

clare toeniskoetter If you want to just sit — astead herndon Can I sit over here? OK, no problem.

astead herndon

— to meet Bishop Ted Myers.

astead herndon Um, I wanted to hear just about you and how you view the primary and what’s going on here, but also just about your life. So how long have you been in South Carolina? bishop theodore myers Life. I’ve lived here all my life. This is home. So there’s a lot of history that goes into that. astead herndon What year — when were you born? What were year were you born?

[music]

bishop theodore myers ‘44, 1944. astead herndon OK. bishop theodore myers Mm-hm. astead herndon What was it like growing up in Lower Richland in the, what, ‘50s, ‘60s? bishop theodore myers Well, it was basically a black community. When I went to school, I had to walk about five miles to go to school as a kid. And we had to walk on dirt roads. So when it rained, it would be like muddy and dirty. But you had to walk those roads if you wanted to go to school. astead herndon What was your family structure like, brothers and sisters? How many — how big was your family? bishop theodore myers We had a nice little baseball team. [LAUGHTER] We had a family of 12. astead herndon OK. bishop theodore myers Yeah. annie brown 12 kids. bishop theodore myers 12 kids. I’m the third child. I had a brother, who was between me and my sister. And when he was about two years old, he became ill. And my father, because we didn’t have doctors close by, my father had to take him in his arms and walk him to a doctor, because it was about 10 miles away. And while he was going, my brother died in his arms. And so he had to bring that baby back home in his arms to my mother. I’m not sure he ever got over that. astead herndon So 10 miles so the closest doctor, five-mile walk on the dirt road to school, is that because Lower Richland is black? bishop theodore myers Listen, we didn’t have those services because, you know, we didn’t count. We had a lack of transportation, public transportation. Parents didn’t have access to jobs. We weren’t real people. We were just part of the environment. astead herndon When’s the first time you voted? bishop theodore myers Oh, I voted when I was 18. As soon as I was able to register, I registered, OK? I knew that if the voting rights was ever there, I didn’t have any other choice. There was nothing, because it sent us a message to the entire population, that we, too, have a right to be a part of this. And I was voting, OK? ‘64, I voted for Johnson. astead herndon Have you voted in every presidential ever since? bishop theodore myers Yeah. clare toeniskoetter In ‘68? bishop theodore myers Yeah, I voted for Humphrey in ‘68. clare toeniskoetter ‘72? bishop theodore myers I voted for McGovern. I thought that he would have been — could have served as a tremendous president. clare toeniskoetter Jimmy Carter? bishop theodore myers Yeah. astead herndon Did you back Bill Clinton? bishop theodore myers Yeah.

astead herndon

Bishop Myers has always voted. And year after year, cycle after cycle, the candidate that he chooses has gone on to become the Democratic nominee.

clare toeniskoetter Gore? bishop theodore myers Yeah. clare toeniskoetter Kerry? bishop theodore myers Yeah.

astead herndon

That’s not because he’s some political psychic. Year after year, black voters, the most loyal constituency of the Democratic Party, have largely coalesced around a singular Democratic candidate and helped propel that individual to the party’s nomination.

astead herndon Obama versus Hillary, who did you support? bishop theodore myers Now, you know. astead herndon I don’t know. bishop theodore myers With me, I was excited. I was excited for him. astead herndon Bernie or Hillary? bishop theodore myers Hillary. Hillary.

astead herndon

So it started to become conventional wisdom. Whoever black people vote for, that candidate will be the Democratic nominee.

astead herndon This time around, how did you — bishop theodore myers Uh — [laughter] clare toeniskoetter When did you start to notice Joe Biden? bishop theodore myers I hadn’t heard about Joe Biden before, but when Obama chose him to be his V.P. I figured, if Obama chose him, he didn’t have to.

astead herndon

Bishop Myers says he just had a good feeling about Biden.

bishop theodore myers He has depth about what he’s saying, and he speaks to that from his heart. That’s the kind of person he is. He feels people. He’s touchable. You can reach Joe. I think he understands where you are. None of us want to see our children leave here before we do. Biden had to see his son die and realize that that’s going to alter him, you know?

astead herndon

This is something Biden talks about all the time. In 2015, he lost his son Beau to brain cancer at just 46 years old. And this wasn’t the first time that Biden had lost family members. In the early 1970s, right after he had won his Senate seat, his wife and one-year-old daughter were killed in a car crash.

bishop theodore myers I have had it happen to me, so I know the pain. annie brown Had what happen to you? bishop theodore myers I have lost two sons. It takes, it takes something special to deal with it. A father losing a son. And I’m sure he had close ties with his son — what you gonna think? Joe Biden has had a lot of hits. That man is good to be able to stand. But I think that Biden has been able to pull some strength from that. I really believe in a connection. I can feel him.

[music]

astead herndon

It was just a month after Joe Biden lost his son that a terrible tragedy happened in South Carolina. A white supremacist walked into a predominantly African-American church and opened fire and killed nine people. As vice president, Joe Biden flies down to South Carolina, goes to the church —

archived recording (joe biden) I wish I could say something that would ease the pain of the families and of the church.

astead herndon

— and speaks with the congregation about grief.

archived recording (joe biden) But I know from experience, and I was reminded of it again 29 days ago, that no words can mend a broken heart, no music can fill the gaping void. At least in my experience, only faith, only faith. And sometimes, as all the preachers in here know, sometimes even faith leaves you just for a second. Sometimes, you doubt.

astead herndon

It’s a powerful moment, where he relates his personal story to their tragedy. And it’s an example of what many black South Carolinians say about Joe Biden. That he’s been there, that they know him and that they trust him.

bishop theodore myers We had a meeting, and he was there, pastors and certain church leaders. And we had a breakfast meeting with him.

astead herndon

And when Bishop Myers got the chance to meet the vice president in person, it sealed his affection for him. Biden lived up to the hype.

bishop theodore myers And it was quite impressive, because he was talking then about some of the problems that we have and how we could overcome. Plain talk, no foolishness. He just laid it all out. astead herndon And you liked him when you met him? bishop theodore myers Oh, yeah. And I thought then that if ever he became a candidate again, that would be the time to vote him in. That would be. clare toeniskoetter You thought that at that moment? bishop theodore myers Yeah. I thought that he was the man for the job.

astead herndon

And that seemed to be true for many South Carolinians. From the moment Biden got into the race, it seemed as if the black vote was his, and his to lose.

astead herndon Is that the front? clare toeniskoetter I think this is the front. astead herndon Hi, how are you? bernice scott I told y’all, I’ve been screaming. Y’all came to the front door. astead herndon I’m sorry. I couldn’t hear you. bernice scott That’s all right. I’m over here. clare toeniskoetter Come to the wrong door? bernice scott Y’all here now, so I might as well let y’all in on this side. astead herndon Are you Bernice? bernice scott Yes, I am. astead herndon It is nice to meet you. Astead. We’re from The New York Times. bernice scott Bernice. Yeah, yeah, come on in. annie brown Thank you. astead herndon Thank you so much. bernice scott That’s why I know y’all are strangers. Y’all came to the door. clare toeniskoetter Should we take our shoes off? Or? bernice scott Oh, please. No. clare toeniskoetter OK. They’re wet, it’s raining! [laughter]

astead herndon

Last Monday morning, Claire, Annie and I went to meet a woman named Bernice Scott. She’s a longtime local political figure, the former head of the Richland City Council, and the head of a volunteer group that’s supporting Joe Biden.

clare toeniskoetter Can I ask you what your shirt says?

astead herndon

They call themselves —

bernice scott Yeah, it’s the “Reckoning Crew.” The Reckoning Crew.

astead herndon

— the Reckoning Crew.

annie brown Hi. Are y’all excited about Saturday? reckoning crew member 1 Yes, reckoning crew member 2 Oh, yes, we are. reckoning crew member 3 [INAUDIBLE] Victory for the V, yeah. Vice President Biden will win.

astead herndon

The group had gotten together to go door knocking for Biden.

clare toeniskoetter How do you — when you door-knock, what do you say? bernice scott I’m Bernice Scott. I’m your neighbor. I’ve worked in this community all my life. I’m out campaigning for Joe Biden. Would you please look at him and what do you think about him? Oh, yeah, I’m for Joe Biden! OK, let’s do it. Meet you at the poll. You can go early.

astead herndon

It was also clear that they felt as if their work was done.

clare toeniskoetter How many doors? Like, how often are people for Joe versus not for Joe when you’re knocking on doors? bernice scott I haven’t ran into anybody yet not for Joe. clare toeniskoetter Zero? Zero people? bernice scott Zero. reckoning crew member I haven’t. I haven’t run into anyone —

astead herndon

Whether or not this has been true for the Reckoning Crew, the evidence tells us there has been some drift away from Biden across the state. Some has come from billionaire Tom Steyer, the businessman who’s invested a lot of time and money in the state, and some has come from Bernie Sanders, who has experienced some success in the early states and is benefiting from name recognition from his last presidential run. Biden still has a healthy lead, but these two candidates have put some pressure on Biden in South Carolina. The latest polling tells us while Biden is at around 35 percent, Sanders is at 20 and Steyer is at 14. But these women are confident that the vote is still there.

astead herndon What would be success for Joe Biden in South Carolina? On Saturday, when we get the votes. If he was supposed to win by 30, by 40 — reckoning crew member But who said that? The news media. astead herndon Joe Biden’s team said that he would have a big firewall in the state, that he would show his strength. If he only wins by a little, is that success? reckoning crew member A win is a win. It’s like getting to heaven or going to hell. There’s no choice there. You either go to heaven or go to hell. astead herndon It doesn’t matter the margins, it doesn’t matter if he squeaks it out? reckoning crew member He can squeak, peak, whatever he want to do, as long as he win.

astead herndon

But margins do matter, particularly in South Carolina. In 2008, Barack Obama won the South Carolina primary by around 30 points. In 2016, Hillary Clinton won the South Carolina primary by around 50 points. And for both those candidates, it kicked off a firewall of delegates that they would amass through black voters in the South and lead them to the nomination. Joe Biden has bet on a similar firewall, but if he doesn’t get those same margins — can’t replicate what Clinton and Obama did — then even a slight win in South Carolina might be the beginning of the end for his candidacy.

helen spearman Yesterday, I went to church and I prayed about it, and I think, you know, that he really is going to win. And he’s going to win by more percentage than what they’re predicting. You know, I spoke to some people after church yesterday and um — annie brown So you think that the polls are wrong? helen spearman In my spirit, yes, I feel they are. You know, so because they had me all hyped up by Hillary, I had bought me a dress to wear to the inaugural ball, and I ain’t wore it yet. [laughter] annie brown You haven’t worn it yet? helen spearman So I think they’re wrong. I really do. annie brown Do you think you’ll wear it on Saturday? helen spearman I might put it on and go out, because I’ll be working at the poll. I might put it on and go out there.

astead herndon

But we are aware of at least one woman that Bernice Scott knows who’s left the Biden camp and gone elsewhere.

annie brown We’re going to speak later today with a woman, Dalhi Myers. bernice scott [GASPING] annie brown What’s that? clare toeniskoetter Why’d you react that way? annie brown Yeah. bernice scott Let me tell you, I — cut that off for a second. annie brown Oh, OK. dalhi myers You look familiar. astead herndon Astead. It’s nice to meet you. How’s it going? dalhi myers Lovely to meet you. I’m Dalhi Myers.

astead herndon

So across town, we meet up with Dalhi Myers.

dalhi myers I am a council person on the Richland County Council, District 10.

astead herndon

Who actually took Bernice Scott’s seat on the Richland County Council.

dalhi myers I was very clear on what it took to win.

astead herndon

Dalhi says she ran an outside the box, anti-establishment, upstart political campaign.

dalhi myers Because I’d had to do it against a machine.

astead herndon

And the machine she describes is Bernice. Which partially explains why we got that reaction when we said we were talking to Dalhi. But only partially.

dalhi myers I’m as capitalist as they come. I mean, I drive an overpriced car. I live in an overpriced house. I buy overpriced clothes. And I spend too much on where I eat, OK?

astead herndon

Dalhi considers herself conservative within the Democratic Party.

dalhi myers I’m a pro-life Democrat, but I do believe the party’s position on abortion is right.

astead herndon

And so like Bernice, her choice was Joe Biden early on.

dalhi myers And I think everybody in my family thought that. I mean, we just thought he could fundamentally win. And I thought he could pull together enough of a coalition of Democrats, moderates and disaffected Republicans to win. It was a “who can win? I think it’s Joe Biden.” astead herndon I mean, in some ways, that’s what the campaign is, the message that it’s giving to its supporters is, right? Like it’s — dalhi myers Yes. astead herndon I mean — dalhi myers And I now disagree with that message. I used to agree with it. I used to think that that was the way to win. But I guess I kind of woke up and realized, who wins an election saying, “I’ll take you backwards“? archived recording (joe biden) [APPLAUSE] There are three basic reasons why I’m running for president of the United States. The first is to restore the soul of the nation. And the second is to rebuild the backbone of this nation. And the third is to unify this nation. We always do better when we act as one America. dalhi myers I knew in my gut that was not a campaign that was targeted to win. There was just nothing inspirational about it. There was no “here is the case for my candidacy.” It was “let’s drive this car looking in the rearview mirror.” Who drives that way?

astead herndon

She goes from being a Biden volunteer to giving up on him.

dalhi myers If you can’t motivate me to go vote for you, and I want to vote for you, how are you going to get people who are not inclined to go vote to go vote for you? I mean, if I’m sitting here going, “Well, I can sit that one out,” and I’m going to vote, how do you get people that you need to motivate to go and vote? And that’s what I saw.

astead herndon

So Dalhi went looking for a new option.

dalhi myers About a year ago, the Sanders campaign, and most other campaigns, reached out to me and asked me to come and sit with the candidate, do a small meet-and-greet. That’s what they were doing in South Carolina. All of them were. It wasn’t unusual. And I said, yeah, I’ll come. But I teased them and said Bernie Sanders is never going to be my candidate. Just, he does not fit anything that is of interest to me. And on top of it all, just the aesthetics don’t work. He doesn’t brush his hair. Y’all don’t make him use gel. But I went and literally sat through the first introduction with a good friend of mine, Courtney [INAUDIBLE] and I just sat there laughing. I was like, Courtney, really? Seriously? annie brown What were you laughing at? dalhi myers Everybody was so gung-ho. I mean, it was just this room packed full of people, and they were rabidly cheering for Bernie. And I just thought it was entertaining. I really did. I didn’t take it seriously. I did not give it much credence. And afterwards, I watched, I guess — archived recording (bernie sanders) Thank you, Michigan! [CHEERING] Thank you, Pittsburgh! [CHEERING] Thank you, Denver! [CHEERING] dalhi myers 10, 15 Sanders rallies. archived recording (bernie sanders) Thank you, Santa Ana! [CHEERING] Greenville, thank you very much. [CHEERING] We were told that it was going to rain, and there’d be a small turnout. Looks like that’s not the case. [CHEERING] dalhi myers And I just thought, nobody’s got this kind of fire and passion. Nobody. archived recording (bernie sanders) Let me thank all the people outside in a second overflow room. It’s a great turnout. Thank you very much. [CHEERING] Not only is this a large crowd, you are a loud crowd! [CHEERING] This is a hell of a turnout. That’s what this is. [CHEERING] dalhi myers 10,000 people. Who does that? archived recording (bernie sanders) We’re 20,000 people, and we had to close the doors. dalhi myers Who does that?

astead herndon

Of course, Sanders has always had this type of energy. It’s been one of his hallmarks. But what Dalhi started to think was that maybe this race isn’t about persuading moderate Republicans to vote for a Democrat over President Trump.

dalhi myers His approval rating is at 90 percent with the Republican Party. And so I’m not convinced that those same people are going to overnight on election day, all of a sudden, not approve of Trump enough to vote for a Democrat — they’re not voting for a Democrat. And so we have to inspire enough Democrats to go to the polls and vote. And that’s part of why I switched. clare toeniskoetter Have you ever voted for a candidate who felt more off with your policy goals? dalhi myers Mm-mm. clare toeniskoetter End of the day, what’s more important to you, electability or policies? dalhi myers Electability is policies. The Democratic Party is not the party of black people. It is a coalition party. So you have to be able to get groups of all people to vote for you across the Democratic Party. Black people, white people, Hispanics, Asians. So if you can’t get whole swaths of this party to vote for you, how ever will we win?

astead herndon

Dalhi represents a transition from the Biden view of electability to a Sanders vision, an anti-establishment vision. She went from thinking that the candidate she chooses has to appeal to moderate Republicans, to embracing the Sanders framework of how you beat Trump — by motivating a cross-section of voters across races and generations. In doing that, it takes Bernie Sanders from being the least electable candidate to the only one who can build that type of coalition.

dalhi myers Ultraconservative people like me who are voting for Bernie Sanders. I mean, that’s shock of all shocks. All of my friends are like, Dalhi, really? Seriously? When did you decide that this made sense? And so they are surprised, and they’ve known me all my life. But I think there’s enough diversity in the black community to still surprise people. I think people have, for far too long, thought that all black people were this monolithic think block, sort of like the Borg from “Star Trek,” you know? We are all the same, and there’s, you know, these connected wires, making us all think the same way. But that is not true. astead herndon I mean, just to keep on this point, it feels like a unique thing of this primary, is that unlike Obama or Clinton, it seems likely that there will not be a runaway winner with black voters. dalhi myers Right. astead herndon But it also makes the group’s voting power, or determinative power, less in the primary. Right? Like if the person wins by a small plurality, that doesn’t mean the same as when Biden — when Clinton won by 60 or when Obama won by 70. Isn’t there some irony there? Like, isn’t it like — it seems as if you’re advocating for a new form of politics, but at the same time, the community, the state you represent, might matter less because of that. dalhi myers So if we turn that around, we could say that it matters more, because it reveals that you are looking at this group in the wrong way. And this group has decided that there are pieces here, there, there and there that it likes. We’re very much a diverse group within the party. So the group could send a message, just not one unified message, right? It could send the message that the old way of doing things, where you can run in South Carolina and pass out a bunch of dollar bills and think that that’s the end of it, or feed people a chicken sandwich or a fish fry — astead herndon Or go to church. dalhi myers Or go to church. That’s absolutely true. My church, you can’t do that. But I do think the old way of speaking to people, reaching people, and sort of lemming-like, sending them off to do a thing, it doesn’t work. astead herndon How’s your convincing efforts with your family going? dalhi myers I think I’m winning. bishop theodore myers Oh! Uh, Dalhi Myers is, of course, my daughter. And I’m her proud father. And she owes me for that. [laughter]

astead herndon

This, again, is Bishop Myers —

bishop theodore myers I think that Joe Biden is an honest person, open person. But I don’t think that he is as — I don’t think that he is as forceful on issues as he has been in the past.

astead herndon

— who has undergone his own sort of transformation in the last couple of weeks.

bishop theodore myers That luster is just not there. It has not been exciting. It may just be that he wants to kind of be that moderate voice, that voice of moderation. And we don’t need a voice of moderation right now. We need someone who can scream — loud. Do something, in light of what is happening to the country and to us brown people, you know? They’re saying, let’s go back to normal. Let’s get back to — What is normal? Normal got us to where we are. Shoot, if I’m normal, that means that you’ve got your foot on my neck, and I’m stuck here screaming, help, help! And you’re saying, it’s all right. I’ll be here next week.

astead herndon

Now, Dalhi hasn’t convinced her father to vote for Bernie Sanders. He’s of his own generation and is looking at this political moment with his own lens.

bishop theodore myers I just, I just knew that if it was not Joe, who would it be? And I just waited for the chips to fall. I guess I was kind of wavering, looking at the field, and then I met Tom. archived recording (commercial voice-over) South Carolina has a chance to make history, but we have to get this right. The status quo just won’t do.

astead herndon

Tom Steyer. Billionaire businessman who has pumped advertising dollars and organizing staff throughout the state of South Carolina.

archived recording (commercial voice-over) That’s why South Carolinians are choosing Tom Steyer. He’s fought for —

astead herndon

He specifically has been trying to woo older black voters, who might be feeling a little nervous about Joe Biden’s candidacy.

clare toeniskoetter Do you remember when you first heard Tom Steyer’s name? Did you see commercials? bishop theodore myers Uh-huh. clare toeniskoetter That’s one thing people talk about with Tom Steyer — that it’s his money, that he’s kind of bought these votes. bishop theodore myers Well, no way. I never want anyone to ever say that money could buy my vote. My vote is too expensive. He really — I mean, he had a plan. Joe doesn’t have a plan, or he doesn’t bring forth this plan. I think he thought that he did not have to do that. And that’s what hurt.

astead herndon

What’s significant about people like Bishop Myers turning away from Biden’s candidacy is that it shows that it’s not just younger voters who are looking for something a little different. The black vote seems to be splintering across demographics.

bishop theodore myers Guys, it’s been a pleasure meeting you. annie brown Such a pleasure. Thank you. bishop theodore myers My joy. astead herndon Thank you so much. I really appreciate it. bishop theodore myers Thank you. astead herndon [INAUDIBLE] bishop theodore myers All right.

[music]

[phone dialing] annie brown He’s probably not going to answer. bishop theodore myers Hello! astead herndon Hi, how are you, Bishop? bishop theodore myers I’m fine.

astead herndon

A few days after we talked to Bishop Myers, we got word that he was planning to vote early.

astead herndon We know we keep bothering you. We gotta get an answer.

astead herndon

But he was second-guessing his vote for Tom Steyer.

bishop theodore myers You gotta get an answer? astead herndon Yeah, did you vote? bishop theodore myers Yeah, I voted. astead herndon All right, so drum roll. How did it end up? bishop theodore myers [LAUGHING] Well, I’ll tell you like this. I really had a searching of the soul in there, and a few things really got me where I’m at [INAUDIBLE].

astead herndon

Two things have happened since we had last spoke. In the Democratic debate, candidates universally went after Bernie Sanders, putting him on the defensive. And the most important political figure in South Carolina, Congressman Jim Clyburn, he endorsed Joe Biden.

bishop theodore myers The piling on of Sanders, the possibility of Steyer not doing much, and I looked at Jim Clyburn having come out for Joe Biden, and I did not want to give Bernie a bad send-off in South Carolina. So I voted for Joe. astead herndon So you voted for what? bishop theodore myers I voted for Joe. astead herndon You voted for Joe? bishop theodore myers No, I’m just joking. [laughter] astead herndon I was like, wait, what? What a plot twist! [laughter] bishop theodore myers I voted for Bernie. astead herndon Oh, wow!

astead herndon