Michigan Democrats are expressing growing concern as recent polls continue to show President Joe Biden trailing former President Donald Trump in the state. The alarm is based on the belief that Biden's personal popularity, rather than policy issues, is the underlying problem.

Adrian Hemond, a Democratic strategist in Michigan, voiced his apprehension, stating, "The level of concern is growing, and it should be." He emphasized that the issue lies not with Biden's policies but with the perception of the man himself.

Representative Dan Kildee, a Democrat from Michigan, recently spoke with President Biden and encouraged him to visit the state, highlighting that the current state of affairs is "not where it should be."

Biden's support for Israel has also become a point of contention in Michigan, particularly in the large Arab-American community centered in Dearborn. David Haener, a Democrat from New Boston, Michigan, expressed his concern, stating, "It's costing him here in Michigan. I wish he would see that he's leaving a huge demographic behind."

Younger voters in the state are expressing frustration with the federal government in general, citing issues such as the lack of progress on voting rights legislation and the mounting burden of student loans. The Wall Street Journal reports that this frustration stems from a deep-seated mistrust in the democratic system itself. Reverend Charles Williams II, the pastor of King Solomon Baptist Church in Detroit, captured the sentiment, stating, "It almost feels like we're coming to a breaking point in democracy where people just don't even think it works anymore. They don't see no hope in Donald Trump; they don't see no hope in Joe Biden."

A December poll indicates that Democratic voters in Michigan are generally unenthusiastic about Biden's presidency. Only 27% of Democrats in the state express enthusiasm for Biden as their party's nominee, according to the Washington Post-Monmouth poll. In contrast, approximately 51% of Democratic voters in Michigan would be "satisfied" with Biden as the nominee, while 19% would be either "dissatisfied" or "upset."

The Biden campaign in Michigan has focused on abortion rights, especially after voters passed a measure in 2022 aimed at protecting such rights.