Genesee County, Mich., home to Flint and the birthplace of General Motors, has been loyal to the Democratic Party for decades. But after years and years of challenges — the closure of auto plants, an exodus of residents, a water crisis — the liberal stronghold is becoming a bona fide battleground. And with about 400,000 residents, the county could help tip the presidential election in this critical swing state.
In and around Flint, voters from both parties described feeling let down by corporations, especially auto companies, and by their political leaders.
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Charles H. Knox Sr.
Charles H. Knox Sr.
Meredith Davis
Meredith Davis
Michael Aversa
Michael Aversa
Meredith Davis
Meredith Davis
Isabelle Snyder
Isabelle Snyder
Michael Aversa
Michael Aversa
Charles H. Knox Sr.
Charles H. Knox Sr.
Meredith Davis
Meredith Davis
Charles H. Knox Sr.
Charles H. Knox Sr.
Meredith Davis
Meredith Davis
Charles H. Knox Sr.
Charles H. Knox Sr.
“Growing up in Flint was great.”
“Growing up in Flint was great.”
“It was a pretty happening place at one time.”
“It was a pretty happening place at one time.”
“Hey, you couldn’t beat it.”
“Hey, you couldn’t beat it.”
“It’s made me resilient because the city is resilient.”
“It’s made me resilient because the city is resilient.”
“In the mid-70s,
“In the mid-70s,
General Motors was booming
General Motors was booming
and it was at its prime.”
and it was at its prime.”
“The closing of GM and taking out those jobs,
“The closing of GM and taking out those jobs,
it hit Flint real hard.”
it hit Flint real hard.”
“It kind of decimated Flint.”
“It kind of decimated Flint.”
“Neighborhoods are gone.”
“Neighborhoods are gone.”
“We still are waiting for the rebound.”
“We still are waiting for the rebound.”
“I’m a waitress of 23 years.”
“I’m a waitress of 23 years.”
“I’m a realtor.”
“I’m a realtor.”
“I’m going to college.”
“I’m going to college.”
“I’m a photographer.”
“I’m a photographer.”
“I work in the automotive industry.”
“I work in the automotive industry.”
“I’m a retiree from General Motors.”
“I’m a retiree from General Motors.”
“I would say there’s a lot of division
“I would say there’s a lot of division
in the state of the country right now.”
in the state of the country right now.”
“My area is very divided.
“My area is very divided.
It’s definitely feeling very 50-50.”
It’s definitely feeling very 50-50.”
“I can feel that tension through the community.”
“I can feel that tension through the community.”
“All my life, I’ve been voting Democrat.”
“All my life, I’ve been voting Democrat.”
“I would prefer my daughter to definitely date
“I would prefer my daughter to definitely date
or get married to a Republican.”
or get married to a Republican.”
“I get along well with my neighbor.
“I get along well with my neighbor.
We just don’t talk politics.”
We just don’t talk politics.”
“Whoever wins,
“Whoever wins,
I still believe it’s going to be trouble in the land.”
I still believe it’s going to be trouble in the land.”
While many suburban areas of Genesee County are prosperous, and downtown Flint has seen rapid redevelopment, other blocks have more vacant lots than occupied houses. About 41 percent of Flint residents, and about 18 percent of people in the wider county, live below the federal poverty line, both well above the statewide rate of 14 percent.
Vice President Kamala Harris is having some success mobilizing parts of the old Democratic coalition, which includes the union workers and Black voters who have long helped power her party’s wins around Flint.
But interviews with more than 20 people across Genesee County also showed that voters still had doubts about Ms. Harris. Some felt their lives were better under former President Donald J. Trump.
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Meredith Davis
Meredith Davis
Michael Aversa
Michael Aversa
Charles H. Knox Sr.
Charles H. Knox Sr.
Meredith Davis
Meredith Davis
Michael Aversa
Michael Aversa
Charles H. Knox Sr.
Charles H. Knox Sr.
Dylan Luna Flint Board of Education
Dylan Luna Flint Board of Education
Charles H. Knox Sr.
Charles H. Knox Sr.
“How I feel about Harris as a candidate is, it scares me.”
“How I feel about Harris as a candidate is, it scares me.”
“I don’t agree with most of her issues.
“I don’t agree with most of her issues.
I think that she is more so focused
I think that she is more so focused
on being a personality.
on being a personality.
I haven’t seen her answer many questions.”
I haven’t seen her answer many questions.”
“She doesn’t have a plan for this country.
“She doesn’t have a plan for this country.
She’s being used by, really, higher powers that be
She’s being used by, really, higher powers that be
as a puppet.”
as a puppet.”
“Are they going to actually elect a woman?
“Are they going to actually elect a woman?
It’s going to be something to see if it happens.
It’s going to be something to see if it happens.
It’s going to be awesome.”
It’s going to be awesome.”
“When I think about the four years
“When I think about the four years
that President Trump served as our president,
that President Trump served as our president,
everything seemed to be going very well.”
everything seemed to be going very well.”
“I voted for Trump back in 2016 and I plan to do so again.”
“I voted for Trump back in 2016 and I plan to do so again.”
“I think he’s the finest president we’ve ever had.
“I think he’s the finest president we’ve ever had.
And the strongest.”
And the strongest.”
“MAGA, MAGA, MAGA.
“MAGA, MAGA, MAGA.
I mean, America is already great.”
I mean, America is already great.”
“He has 34 felonies against him.
“He has 34 felonies against him.
If you had done a fraction of what President Trump did
If you had done a fraction of what President Trump did
and you applied for a job, I don’t know, at Aldi, Kroger,
and you applied for a job, I don’t know, at Aldi, Kroger,
at a law firm, do you think you could get hired?”
at a law firm, do you think you could get hired?”
“One thing that scares me about him:
“One thing that scares me about him:
When he said, and I don’t know whether it slipped
When he said, and I don’t know whether it slipped
over some people, but, ‘If you elect me this time,
over some people, but, ‘If you elect me this time,
you will never have to vote again.’
you will never have to vote again.’
He wants to be a dictator.
He wants to be a dictator.
He really do.”
He really do.”
Auto Industry Fortunes
Across party and racial lines, inside and outside of Flint city limits, residents described frustration with increasing food and housing prices. For some, it was an inconvenience but not an existential threat. For others, it was forcing painful questions, like whether they could afford rent or how often they could buy meat.
Tyonna McIntyre, 59, who lives just outside Flint and works the overnight shift as a dock worker, said she was seeking out sales and cutting back on purchases like ground beef. “Everything is high,” she said. “Ground beef used to be so cheap.”
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Michael Aversa
Michael Aversa
Michael Aversa
Michael Aversa
Meredith Davis
Meredith Davis
Isabelle Snyder
Isabelle Snyder
Michael Aversa
Michael Aversa
Meredith Davis
Meredith Davis
Charles H. Knox Sr.
Charles H. Knox Sr.
Michael Aversa
Michael Aversa
Charles H. Knox Sr.
Charles H. Knox Sr.
“The state of the economy is a big one.”
“The state of the economy is a big one.”
“The economy is not good.”
“The economy is not good.”
“Everyone’s paying higher amount in groceries.”
“Everyone’s paying higher amount in groceries.”
“You get a little bag of groceries
“You get a little bag of groceries
and it costs you $50.
and it costs you $50.
It’s ridiculous.”
It’s ridiculous.”
“And gas —”
“And gas —”
“Gas prices.”
“Gas prices.”
“Gasoline —
“Gasoline —
my God, gasoline has driven everything up.”
my God, gasoline has driven everything up.”
“It’s hard to save as much as I used to.”
“It’s hard to save as much as I used to.”
“Trying to find a place to live is the hardest part.
“Trying to find a place to live is the hardest part.
Like it’s so hard to rent.
Like it’s so hard to rent.
They ask you to make
They ask you to make
three times the amount of rent a month.”
three times the amount of rent a month.”
“The Biden-Harris campaign had four years to make changes,
“The Biden-Harris campaign had four years to make changes,
and in those four years
and in those four years
I haven’t seen the economy thrive.”
I haven’t seen the economy thrive.”
“The Democrats’ biggest problem
“The Democrats’ biggest problem
when it comes to the economy thing is messaging.
when it comes to the economy thing is messaging.
This economy has turned around.
This economy has turned around.
It’s headed in the right direction.”
It’s headed in the right direction.”
“In the four years President Trump was in office,
“In the four years President Trump was in office,
our economy was super.
our economy was super.
Our interest rates were at a super low.”
Our interest rates were at a super low.”
“He inherited a good economy,
“He inherited a good economy,
and he’s going to take credit for it.
and he’s going to take credit for it.
And that’s why I don’t want him to be president now.”
And that’s why I don’t want him to be president now.”
The auto industry is inextricably tied to the economic health of the area: The midcentury boom of General Motors made Genesee County a place where a high school diploma and a strong work ethic could secure a middle-class life. But the downturns that followed left thousands jobless.
Pride in the county’s auto industry is still evident in the number of locally built Chevy and GMC trucks seen driving around Flint. But there is worry among both Democrats and Republicans about the city’s future.
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Charles H. Knox Sr.
Charles H. Knox Sr.
I drive General Motors cars.
I drive General Motors cars.
I take care of the hands that take care of me.
I take care of the hands that take care of me.
Mercedes-Benz don’t pay my pension.
Mercedes-Benz don’t pay my pension.
I can remember when I first started at GM,
I can remember when I first started at GM,
I was making about $4.25 an hour.
I was making about $4.25 an hour.
That was real good money.
That was real good money.
As an assembly worker, you really become a human robot
As an assembly worker, you really become a human robot
because everything is repetitious,
because everything is repetitious,
and you’re doing about 50, 60 jobs an hour.
and you’re doing about 50, 60 jobs an hour.
That was my life from 19 all the way to 54 years old.
That was my life from 19 all the way to 54 years old.
At that particular time,
At that particular time,
I mean, Flint was great.
I mean, Flint was great.
And when GM left the city,
And when GM left the city,
a lot of neighborhoods
a lot of neighborhoods
was abandoned because people no longer
was abandoned because people no longer
could afford the homes.
could afford the homes.
They couldn’t live to have the lifestyle they had.
They couldn’t live to have the lifestyle they had.
When you take the economy out of the city,
When you take the economy out of the city,
you took the vein out of the city.
you took the vein out of the city.
Politicians regularly come to town promising to revitalize carmaking, and warning that the other party could doom it. Both Mr. Trump and Ms. Harris have visited Flint in recent weeks with clashing pitches on electric vehicles.
Republicans have made progress winning over union workers and retirees, but auto workers and other union members have long been a significant part of the Democratic base. Many of those unions, including the United Auto Workers, have endorsed Ms. Harris.
“For the first time in a very, very long time, I feel secure in my job,” said Art Reyes, 57, who has worked for more than 30 years at General Motors and once served in local U.A.W. leadership. He said he was voting for Ms. Harris. “I see the focus of onshoring things, which is a complete reversal of the trend of the last 40 years.”
Yet some former Democratic voters said they had been won over by Mr. Trump’s nationalist message on trade, the economy and immigration.
Many in town point to the North American Free Trade Agreement, which took effect in 1994, as a moment when the local economy took a turn for the worse. Mr. Trump railed against that deal, but ultimately replaced it as president with a similar trade pact with Canada and Mexico.
Bill Bain, 66, is a former U.A.W. worker who voted for Hillary Clinton in 2016. But Mr. Trump later won him over with his message on trade, and Mr. Bain was elected to a township board in 2020 as a Republican.
“I saw he had good policies,” Mr. Bain said of Mr. Trump, “and he did what he said. He said he was going to get rid of NAFTA, and he did.”
Mandy Christle, 49, who lives just north of Flint, says she often hears people complaining about high prices. She views the economy differently.
“Personally I don’t think things are really all that bad,” said Ms. Christle, who plans to vote for Ms. Harris and who has worked at an auto parts store and a McDonald’s.
