The 59-percent black turnout rate last year more closely resembles the 60-percent rate in 2004 than either of former President Barack Obama’s elections. | Getty Study: Black turnout slumped in 2016

The turnout rate rose among white voters in the 2016 election and declined substantially among black voters, according to a new study.

The Census’ Current Population Survey, released Wednesday, shows 65 percent of white citizens cast ballots in last year’s presidential election, up from 64 percent four years earlier.


But the turnout rate among African-American citizens tumbled sharply, the survey shows. Only 59 percent of black citizens voted in 2016, down from 66 percent in 2012 and 65 percent in 2008.

The Current Population Survey is based on self-reporting and carries margins of error just like any other poll — and, in some cases, differs from the national exit poll and data collected from voter files in the various states. But it provides some new clues about the driving forces behind President Donald Trump’s surprising victory last fall.

A decline in African-American turnout is consistent with other data sources that suggest that lower voting rates among the traditionally Democratic voting group may have doomed Hillary Clinton in last year’s presidential race. The 59-percent black turnout rate last year more closely resembles the 60-percent rate in 2004 than either of former President Barack Obama’s elections.

Despite talk of a surge in Hispanic turnout, the poll finds the turnout rate among Latino citizens held steady at 48 percent from 2012 — though Hispanics still made up a larger share of the electorate as a result of population growth.

While white turnout increased in 2016, demographic changes led to a slight decline in the share of the electorate whites comprised: 73 percent, down from 74 percent in 2012. Hispanics made up 9 percent of the electorate, the survey shows, up from 8 percent in 2012. But the African-American share of the electorate slipped from 13 percent in 2012 to 12 percent in 2016.

The 1-point drop in white voters’ share of the electorate is far less than recent declines, according to the survey. The white share of the electorate had fallen from 79 percent in 2004, to 76 percent in 2008 and 74 percent in 2012.

Overall, the study shows 61 percent of U.S. citizens casted ballots in last year’s election, down from 62 percent in 2012 and 64 percent in 2008.

While the overall electorate continues to age — and younger voters continue to lag behind their elders in turnout rates — the youngest citizens actually turned out at a greater rate than four years ago. Forty-three percent of citizens aged 18 to 24 cast ballots, up from 41 percent in 2012.

By contrast, the turnout rates among those aged 25 to 44 (57 percent), 45 to 64 (67 percent) and 65 and older (71 percent) all exceeded the rate among younger Americans, but were either unchanged or down slightly from 2012.

The Current Population Survey, unlike the national exit poll, doesn’t ask respondents for whom they voted in last year’s presidential or congressional elections.