‘There’s No Such Thing As A Black Vote,’ Researcher Says

(Source: MIRS.news, Published 09/16/2026) Black voters across Michigan, Ohio and Wisconsin differ sharply by age and gender in how they view the Democratic Party, what issues they prioritize and what they want from candidates, according to new polling that researchers say should caution campaigns against treating the “Black vote” as a single political bloc.

Change Research surveyed more than 1,100 Black voters across the three states from late August through early September and presented the findings Wednesday during a Zoom webinar focused on Black Midwestern voters. Michigan accounted for the largest share of the sample, which was divided proportionally based on each state's Black voting population.

The margin of error was approximately plus or minus 3 percentage points for the full sample and was larger for individual states and demographic subgroups.

“Do not look at the Black vote as the Black vote,” said Change Research analyst Matt Booker during the webinar. “There’s no such thing as a Black vote.”

The differences were particularly stark in attitudes toward Democrats.

Across the three-state survey, 64% of Black voters viewed the Democratic Party favorably, but that support was considerably stronger among older voters.

Favorability approached 80% among Black women over 50 and was around 70% among Black men over 50. Among women under 50, it fell to about half, while only around 40% of Black men under 50 viewed the party favorably.

Booker described younger Black voters as “much cooler on the status quo,” with differences extending beyond their views of the Democratic Party to the issues they prioritize and the institutions and media they trust.

About one-third of respondents strongly agreed that Democrats care about people like them, while another 44% somewhat agreed. Among younger Black men and women, however, only about one in five strongly agreed.

Similarly, 34% said they trust the Democratic Party and feel it represents their interests, a sentiment Booker said was concentrated heavily among women over 50.

The divides, however, did not mean younger Black voters were moving uniformly toward Republicans.

"There are some pretty big nuances," Booker said, adding that younger Black voters prioritize progressiveness in their candidates to a much higher degree than older ones.

Twenty-five percent of women under 50 said supporting the candidate who was most progressive was important to them, with about the same share of younger men saying so, Booker said.

"And then when you look at opposing unconditional arms sales to Israel, that was not a massive issue overall for these voters. It was below things like affordability, but it was much higher than it is for older ones," Booker added.

Younger Black men, in particular, placed heavier emphasis on the economy, housing costs and affordability than on some racial or cultural issues, according to Booker.

That focus also showed up when respondents were asked what Democrats could do to earn their trust.

Priorities included addressing everyday issues like housing, passing legislation to lower costs, showing up in Black communities between elections and fighting harder against Republicans.

Nominating more Black candidates ranked lower among the steps respondents said Democrats could take to earn their trust.

“Voters in these states don't necessarily need to see candidates who look like them,” Booker said. “Maybe it's a little bit of a bonus, but that's not an overriding issue with these voters. They want people who are going to fight.”

Michigan’s gubernatorial race provided one example.

Booker said Republican gubernatorial nominee John James (R-Shelby Township) was performing about the same among Black voters as Republican U.S. Senate nominee Mike Rogers.

“There’s no boost for John James being a Black man running,” Booker said.

Booker said Democratic gubernatorial nominee Jocelyn Benson and Democratic U.S. Senate nominee Abdul El-Sayed were each “hovering around 80% of the vote” among Black voters, with about 10% undecided.

James and Rogers, meanwhile, were performing at similar levels among those voters, Booker said.

“Identity is just not an overriding thing,” Booker said. “It’s really what they stand for, who they’re going to fight for.”