Editorial: Political campaigns pigeon-hole voters at their peril

Miles Jones said he feels a disconnect.

“I’ve never really felt seen and heard as a voter,” Jones said.

Jones, 29, lives in Pittsburgh’s East Allegheny neighborhood. He is a native of Georgia and strives to be an independent thinker. He says he leans toward liberal positions but feels detached from a political party. His vote is personal and important to him.

He is one of a group of young Black men who recently gathered to talk politics. It’s an important subject. Jones isn’t alone in feeling like his needs aren’t being addressed. You can see that in polls that show some in the demographic — historically a constant supporter of Democratic candidates — are being successfully wooed by Republicans.

An NAACP survey this month showed 26% of Black men under 50 are planning to vote for former president and GOP nominee Donald Trump. That’s about half of the 49% who say they will vote for Vice President Kamala Harris, but it matters. In 2020, Trump got just 8% of Black voters overall and 12% of Black men.

It’s an example of what both parties and all campaigns need to keep in mind. Pigeonholing voters is a mistake. There are Black men in Allegheny County who will vote for Trump and white women in Westmoreland County who will vote for Harris.

It isn’t just about race. Age can be another arbitrary divider.

“Youth vote will deliver an election victory,” said Cory Roma, 24, former Young Democrats of Allegheny County vice president. “I feel like the youth vote is the most important group of voters to talk to.”

Roma is right. However, both parties need to speak directly to young voters rather than relying on the belief that young voters skew Democrat and older voters lean Republican.

Pennsylvanians are being courted aggressively by the Trump and Harris camps as almost every day brings a visit from a candidate or surrogate. Pennsylvania is the largest swing state and considered by many to be a must-win for either side, making talking to the voters critical.

But what we often see are the campaigns preaching to their own faithful rather than reaching out to the communities that seem more in the opposition’s column.

That can end up leaving someone like Jones — a voter eager to find a candidate who speaks to him — in limbo. In an election where undecided voters will make all the difference, that’s a mistake.