Issue brief: Detroit Decides: Views on the City, Priorities for the Next Mayor, and Intentions to Vote
DETROIT-Detroiters who view the city as headed in the right direction are more likely to vote in the Nov. 4 election than those who think the city is on the wrong track, according to a survey from the University of Michigan's Detroit Metro Area Communities Study.
Overall, 56% of Detroiters believe the city is generally headed in the right direction, compared to 13% who said the city is generally on the wrong track, and 31% who are not sure about the city's direction. The survey was fielded Aug. 6 through Oct. 1, and results are weighted to represent the demographics of city residents as a whole.
Among Detroiters with a positive view of the city's direction, 70% said they will definitely vote in the upcoming election, which will be the first time in more than a decade that Detroiters will elect a new mayor. Only 41% of those who believe the city is on the wrong track and 52% of those who are not sure about the city's direction said they will definitely vote in the November election.
"We asked Detroiters about their priorities for the new city administration, in addition to assessing their general sentiments about the city's direction and their intentions to vote. We see notable differences by age, race and city council district, which underscore the importance of capturing the diversity of Detroiters' views through this survey," said Jeffrey Morenoff, one of the faculty leads for DMACS and U-M professor of sociology and public policy.
Morenoff co-authored a new issue brief that analyzes the survey results. This adds on to a previous brief published in September that examined the top challenges facing Detroit households and how they hope city officials will respond (Related story: Survey shows top challenges Detroiters want new mayor to address).
In total, 61% of Detroiters said they definitely will vote in the Nov. 4 election, while 25% reported they probably will vote, and 14% said they either probably or definitely will not vote. These voting intentions closely mirror those reported in a DMACS survey conducted last year, when roughly 6 in 10 Detroiters said they would "definitely" vote in the 2024 presidential election.
Older Detroiters expressed much more certainty about voting in the upcoming election than younger voters, with 82% of Detroiters aged 65 and over reporting that they definitely will vote compared to only 39% of Detroiters under age 35.
More educated and higher-income Detroiters also are more likely to vote. There is not a significant difference between the percentage of Black Detroiters (65%) and white Detroiters (64%) who said they will definitely vote in November, but Latino Detroiters expressed far less certainty about voting, with only 27% indicating they will definitely vote.
"The survey offers powerful insights into some of the hopes and concerns shaping this historic election. We're seeing variation in who feels motivated to vote," said Yucheng Fan, data manager at DMACS and co-author of the issue brief.
Optimism about the city's direction varied across groups. The survey found men (65%) were more likely than women (48%) to say Detroit is generally headed in the right direction. White residents (70%) were more likely than Black (54%) or Latino residents (53%) to say the city is headed in the right direction. Older and higher-income Detroiters also were more optimistic about the city's trajectory.
Looking at city council districts, a positive view of the city's direction is most prevalent in Downtown, Midtown and Southwest Detroit (Districts 5 and 6) and least prevalent on the East Side (Districts 3 and 4). Residents on the Northwest Side of Detroit fall in between these two ends of the spectrum.
In terms of what Detroiters want the new mayor to address, the following issues ranked as high priorities:
- Quality of K-12 schools (81% of Detroiters said this is a high priority issue)
- Crime and safety (80%)
- Affordable housing (77%)
- Access to high quality jobs (75%)
- Road condition and infrastructure (65%)
- Businesses and investments (64%)
- Public transportation (61%)
- Size of Detroit's population (34%)
K-12 schools are a higher priority for Black and Latino residents and Detroiters with annual household incomes of $10,000 or more, while education is a lower priority for white residents and residents with incomes under $10,000.
Crime and safety is a higher priority for Black residents, women, older Detroiters, those with higher levels of education and Detroiters with middle incomes. Affordable housing is a higher priority for Black residents, women, older residents and those with low to middle incomes. Access to high quality jobs is a higher priority for Black residents, women and Detroiters with low to middle incomes.
