MIAMI (AP) — Concerts and carnival events are taking place in voting districts. “Souls to the Polls” mobilizations after the Sunday service. And star-studded rallies with Hollywood actors, business leaders, musicians and activists.

Such seemingly disparate efforts all have a single goal: increasing Black voter turnout before Election Day.

How Black communities fare in the 2024 elections has come under scrutiny because of the critical role Black voters have played in races for the White House, Congress and state legislatures across the country.

Vice President Kamala Harris, who would be the second Black president if elected, has made engaging Black voters a priority of her news and political platform. Meanwhile, former President Donald Trump has tried to gain a foothold with Democrats' most consistent voting bloc with unorthodox and sometimes controversial moves.

A key strategy in Harris and the Democrats' outreach to black voters includes sending the first black president and his wife, the former first lady, to battleground states where victory may depend on how well the Obamas appeal to ambivalent or apathetic voters can convince them that they can't accept this one out.

Democrats' efforts ranged from vigorous door-knocking campaigns in Atlanta, Detroit and Philadelphia this weekend to swing rallies in the states. Michelle Obama joined Grammy Award-winning artist Alicia Keys in rallying voters in Norristown, Pennsylvania, on Saturday, while Barack Obama remained stumped in Milwaukee on Sunday. The former first lady also held her own scrupulously nonpartisan rally on Tuesday, where speakers touched on the South's civil rights history.

“I continue to be amazed at how little so many people truly understand how profoundly elections affect our daily lives,” said Michelle Obama. “Because that’s exactly what your voice is, it’s your chance to say what you want to those in power.”

Efforts to increase Black voter turnout often begin at the community level. In Miami, members of local churches gathered at the African Heritage Cultural Arts Center on Sunday and marched to a nearby early voting center as part of a “Souls to the Polls” event.

“It helps a lot to encourage others to vote,” said Regina Tharpe, a Miami resident. She had previously voted, but said people “get excited when they see us walking down the street. It encourages them to get out.”

Sharina Perez, a first-time voter, brought her mother Celina DeJesus to vote on the last day of early voting in Florida. She said a number of issues inspired her to vote. “It was for myself, my future, my mother’s future and for the younger generation,” she said.

Organizers focused on Black communities say they are often battling fatigue and cynicism toward politics, particularly among younger Black voters and Black men. But they are cautiously optimistic that their efforts will bear fruit.

“If you want the people who are going to be most affected to speak out, you have to go where they are,” said Jamarr Brown, executive director of Color of Change PAC, whose campaigns for black voters host live events in Georgia belonged. Michigan, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin. The group reached more than 8 million voters in those states via text message and digitally in the last month, he said.

“We went to these counties and communities, to these new platforms and websites, where there is so often misinformation targeting our communities,” Brown said.

Other events had a looser structure. The Detroit Pistons, for example, hosted a “Pistonsland” festival in a majority-black neighborhood with musical performances by rappers like Lil Baby, carnival games, food trucks and other fanfare, as well as the opportunity to cast a vote. The nonpartisan carnival was set up next to an early voting polling station.

“I don’t like either one,” said Karl Patrick, a Detroit native who attended the festival. However, he strongly supported Harris “because Trump wants to be a dictator.” Not all of his close friends came to the same conclusion – at least one of his friends passionately supports the former president, he said.

Black voters are the predominantly Democratic voting group in the country. But the Trump campaign has taken a more concerted approach this year to win over a larger share of black voters, particularly black men.

The Trump campaign has also focused on economic arguments. Trump has repeatedly argued that undocumented immigrants are taking “black jobs,” despite economists to consider the claim to be unfounded. The campaign believes the former president's broader stance on the economy, crime and traditional values ​​resonates in black communities.

“If Kamala wanted to turn our country around, she would do it now,” said Janiyah Thomas, a spokeswoman for the Trump campaign. “We deserve more than just symbolic gestures – we deserve a leader who respects us, empowers us and backs it up with action.”

Republican Reps. Byron Donalds and Wesley Hunt have emerged as key surrogates in Trump's outreach to black men. The campaign hosted a black men's barbershop roundtable with Donalds in Philadelphia in October. The Black Conservative Federation, A gala attended by Trump took place here earlier this yearheld a “closing argument” event with Donalds and Hunt on Sunday.

Like many Americans, millions of black voters have already taken part in the election, including in Georgia and North Carolina.

Rep. Hank Johnson, D-Georgia, spoke about that state's voter turnout at a Tuesday brunch and the opening of a bus tour hosted by the Black Music Action Coalition.

“The truth is that Trump advised his people who always vote on Election Day to get out early. So they are the ones who make these numbers seem so big. For us, Black people, we underperformed a little bit,” Johnson said.

Black early voter turnout fell slightly in North Carolina compared to 2020, although increased turnout at the end of early voting narrowed the gap. Whether Black voter turnout breaks records in 2020 depends on Election Day. Many veteran black leaders are confident that the myriad strategies will turn out voters.

“Of course, there's still a group of people who still don't believe their vote makes a difference, and they're left behind,” said the Rev. Wendell Anthony, a Detroit pastor and president of the city's NAACP chapter. But so far, he added, “the indicators for us are that these people are coming. They are not going to miss this historic moment.”

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Matt Brown reported from Wilmington, Delaware. Makiya Seminera in Raleigh, North Carolina, and Jeff Amy in Atlanta contributed.