'Messy,' 'divided' and 'scary': swing voters rate the country ahead of Election Day
asserted
voters → rate → Day
'Messy,' 'divided' and 'scary': swing voters rate the country ahead of Election Day
Gerald and Wally both voted for President Trump in 2024, helping him with the state of Georgia.
asserted
Gerald → rate → Georgia
Their votes in 2026 illustrate the challenges the president and his party face in today's midterms.
asserted
president → illustrate → midterms
Gerald is still all in, giving Trump an A+++.
asserted
Gerald → give → A+++
He cast his ballot on the first day of early voting in Georgia for Republicans Mike Collins for Senate and Rick Jackson for governor.
asserted
He → cast → governor
"Red all the way down the ballot," Gerald said.
asserted
Gerald → say → ballot
"There was one instance where there was nothing but a Democrat running unopposed and I preferred to write my own name in, because I refuse to give a Democrat my vote.
asserted
I → be → vote
Wally, on the other hand, represents a fraying of the Trump coalition.
asserted
Wally → represent → coalition
Every time he's been asked since March, he's given the president an F.
"I just don't think that he's an effective leader and I thought that as Americans we'd do so much better," he said.
asserted
he → ask → Americans
Wally said inflation is the top issue influencing his vote, but he doesn't have a lot of hope that any one politician or any one election can fix it.
asserted
politician → say → it
He also voted early in Georgia for the Democratic Senate incumbent Jon Ossoff and gubernatorial candidate Keisha Lance Bottoms — a vote against Trump and MAGA as much as anything else.
asserted
He → vote → anything
He gives Democrats and Republicans in Congress an F as well.
asserted
He → give → F
"I think these people are essentially stealing money from the American public and we need wholesale change in this midterm, and we also need a big change for the next presidential election," he said.
asserted
he → think → election
Wally and Gerald are among a group of swing voters in swing states NPR has been checking in with regularly as part of a long-term reporting project called Swing Shift.
asserted
NPR → check → project
NPR has agreed not to use their full names so they can speak freely about politics, without fear of personal or professional repercussions.
asserted
they → agree → repercussions
All of the Swing Shift voters have cast a ballot for President Trump over the past decade.
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All → cast → decade
Most of them voted for him just two years ago.
asserted
Most → vote → him
When Americans cast their votes in the midterm elections, they'll have the chance to weigh in on the state of the country, nearly two years into President Trump's second term in office.
asserted
they → cast → office
Asked for one word or phrase to describe how they are feeling, Swing Shift voters used words like "messy," "divided," "disarray," and "scary.
asserted
voters → ask → words
In the week before Election Day, their assessment of Trump's performance on the job roughly aligns with national polls: most were unhappy or underwhelmed, often citing the war in Iran and high energy prices as major concerns.
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most → align → concerns
Only two of the 11 Swing Shift voters told NPR they were happy with Trump's second term.
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they → tell → term
Theresa, a Pennsylvania voter who voted for former President Joe Biden in 2020, then President Trump in 2024, said she would give the president a C-.
"Because he said the war was only going to be a few weeks.
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war → vote → C-
And we knew that was not the case," she said.
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she → know → ?
Lee from Nevada, one of the voters happy with Trump, still voiced concerns about the war with Iran.
asserted
Lee → voice → Iran
He gave Trump's performance in office this term an A-.
asserted
He → give → A-
"Because the war in Iran is taking kind of long," he said.
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he → take → Iran
When NPR first spoke to Lee, he was out of work.
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he → speak → work
Now, with a new job, his outlook on the economy has improved.
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outlook → improve → economy
He said he's gotten even more Republican since the last election and more suspicious of Democrats.
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he → say → Democrats
Meanwhile, Quintero, a Biden to Trump voter, also from Nevada, told NPR he is swinging back to Democrats in this year's midterms.
asserted
he → tell → midterms
That's the challenge for Republicans: two years in, the Trump 2024 base isn't supplying reliable Republican votes.
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base → supply → votes
Trump hangs over every race — but he isn't on the ballot
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he → hang → ballot
Even as this election, like all midterms, has turned into a referendum on the president and his policies, he isn't on the ballot.
asserted
he → turn → ballot
So the question is how their feelings about Trump and his presidency will translate to votes for the House, Senate and governors.
asserted
feelings → translate → House
In Pennsylvania, the Swing Shift voters are divided: three out of four voted for Trump in 2024.
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three → divide → 2024
Now, three of them plan to vote for Democratic Gov. Josh Shapiro, who is seeking re-election.
asserted
who → plan → election
"I might get in there and change my mind again.
uncertain
I → get → mind
But at this point, it is going to be with the politician that we're familiar with, which is Shapiro," Theresa said.
asserted
Theresa → go → that
In the northern suburbs of Philadelphia, Stephen lives in one of the most competitive House districts in the country, Pennsylvania's 1st Congressional District.
asserted
Stephen → live → country
Incumbent Republican Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick has survived a Democratic wave before, and Stephen is willing to stick with him.
asserted
Stephen → survive → him
…and 8 more, not listed.
The Aporia
