As the midterm elections approach, swing voters in key states describe the state of the nation using words like messy, divided, disarray, and scary. These voters, part of a long-term reporting project by NPR called Swing Shift, all voted for President Trump over the past decade, including most who supported him two years ago.
Varying assessments of the president’s second term
Gerald, a voter in Georgia, remains a staunch supporter, giving President Trump an A+++ and casting his ballot straight-line Republican for Mike Collins for Senate and Rick Jackson for governor. He noted that he would rather write his own name in than vote for a Democrat. On the other hand, Wally represents a fraying of the Trump coalition, consistently giving the president an F and calling him an ineffective leader. Wally cited inflation as his top voting issue and cast his early ballot for Democratic Senate incumbent Jon Ossoff and gubernatorial candidate Keisha Lance Bottoms, giving both congressional parties an F for essentially stealing money from the American public.
In the week before Election Day, national sentiment among these voters aligned with national polls, with most feeling unhappy or underwhelmed while pointing to high energy prices and the war in Iran as major concerns. Only two out of 11 Swing Shift voters told NPR they were happy with the president’s second term. Theresa, a Pennsylvania voter who supported Joe Biden in 2020 and Trump in 2024, gave the administration a C- because the war lasted longer than promised. Lee from Nevada, who is happy with Trump and gave him an A-, still voiced concerns about the prolonged war with Iran while noting his economic outlook improved after finding a new job. Another Nevada voter, Quintero, stated he is swinging back to Democrats for the midterms, highlighting the challenge Republicans face in keeping the 2024 coalition reliable.
Midterm choices and local races
Although President Trump is not on the ballot, his presence looms over every congressional and gubernatorial race. In Pennsylvania, three out of four Swing Shift voters who backed Trump in 2024 now plan to support Democratic Governor Josh Shapiro in his re-election bid. Theresa explained that she prefers to stick with a familiar politician. In Pennsylvania’s 1st Congressional District, Stephen plans to re-elect incumbent Republican Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick while voting for Shapiro at the top of the ticket and leaning Democratic for other offices.
John, a voter from Philadelphia who backed the Republican in the governor’s race, feels the country is teetering and described the state of the nation as anxious. He anticipates a future of gridlock, impeachment talk, and investigations if Democrats win the midterms, noting he is unhappy with both political parties.
