ABC News (AU)
· collected 2026-10-11 · by Lauren Day and Bradley McLennan
Pastor and auctioneer Daniel DeGarmo has a gift for persuasion.
asserted
DeGarmo → have → persuasion
In his church, he can move a congregation.
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he → move → congregation
On the auction floor, he can move just about anything else.
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he → move → anything
This unlikely combination of professions gives him a unique view of his community of Chillicothe, in rural Ohio.
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combination → give → Ohio
"Everyone in the community, whether it's in church or the auction house, we're feeling the strain of things being more expensive," he says.
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he → feel → strain
"Some people are going to blame politics; they're going to blame the government; they are going to blame Trump.
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they → go → Trump
Other people are going to blame the previous government and the previous president."
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people → go → government
The father of eight voted for Donald Trump in both 2016 and 2024.
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father → vote → 2016
He has been particularly upset by the Trump administration's treatment of immigrants and the failure to bring down the cost of living.
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He → upset → living
That is why he is carefully weighing what to do at the November midterm elections, which will determine the makeup of Congress for the second half of Mr Trump's presidency.
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which → weigh → presidency
'Stuck in the middle'
For years, Chillicothe was a bellwether town in a bellwether state, meaning local election results mirrored the national mood.
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results → stick → mood
But this year, Ohio is one of several previously reliably "red", or Republican, states that have suddenly and unexpectedly come into play.
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that → come → play
Polls are now suggesting the midterms could bring a "blue wave" — or even a tsunami — and see Democrats win in areas once viewed as almost unwinnable.
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Democrats → suggest → areas
Cook Political Report founder Charlie Cook told ABC America last month that a Democratic takeover of the House of Representatives was a "done deal".
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takeover → tell → Representatives
He rated the party's chances of taking control of the Senate as "very realistic".
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He → rat → Senate
To win a Senate majority, Democrats need to gain four Republican-held seats while also holding onto their own seats, which new polling suggests is increasingly possible.
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polling → win → seats
In North Carolina, the party appears on track to flip a Republican seat.
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party → appear → seat
In Maine, the Senate race is considered a toss-up.
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race → consider → Maine
And a New York Times/Siena poll last week found Democrats were also performing strongly in five reliably Republican states: Texas, Alaska, Iowa, Kansas and Ohio, where Democrat Sherrod Brown leads incumbent Republican John Husted 49 to 46.
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Brown → find → Husted
Mr DeGarmo says he will not be backing either candidate put up by the major parties.
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he → say → parties
"Right now I'm stuck in the middle, and I'm not really sure if I'll even vote, quite frankly," he says.
"
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he → stick → middle
If I do, it'll be the first time I would ever vote for an independent candidate."
'Red undertow'
Earlier this month, Mr Trump visited Ohio as part of a weeks-long midterms campaign blitz and repeated his plea to voters to "pretend I'm on the ballot".
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I → do → ballot
Some voters say they will — which could prove a problem for him.
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which → say → him
"What we're seeing is definitely a lot more of a referendum on Trump than it is a referendum on the Democratic Party," says Boston University political science professor David Hopkins.
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Hopkins → see → Party
"The Democratic Party has not really become more popular over the last few years, but it's just the Republicans have become less popular.
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it → become → years
This dynamic has given rise to a new term many are now using to predict November's outcome.
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many → give → outcome
Rather than a "blue wave" of voters enthusiastically endorsing the Democratic message, some are now describing a "red undertow" where Republicans are sucked into the backwash of their leader's unpopularity.
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Republicans → endorse → unpopularity
Polls consistently rank rising living costs, which Mr Trump promised to lower, as a major source of voter anger.
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Trump → rank → anger
Chillicothe voter Chad Beatty, who owns a landscaping and lawn care business, says fuel prices are "killing" his business to the point "it's almost not worth working".
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it → own → point
He voted Democrat at the last election and believes the party will win a Senate seat in Ohio this year.
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party → vote → Ohio
"[Trump] hasn't delivered on nothing he said he's gonna do and finally, I think people are catching onto his game and know that he's not for them," he says.
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he → deliver → them
Last year, the local paper mill closed, and about 800 people lost their jobs.
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people → close → jobs
Now, a controversial data centre is proposed for the site.
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centre → propose → site
Hairdresser Lacey Powell used to be a Democrat when her father worked at the mill.
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father → use → mill
But she feels like the party no longer cares about blue-collar or working-class voters.
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party → feel → voters
She voted for Trump in 2024 because she thought he would support small businesses like hers, but she is disappointed in what she has seen.
Like Mr DeGarmo, she is unsure if she will vote in the midterms.
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she → vote → midterms
"We were told about tariffs: it would be hard at first, and then we'd see relief — and you know, I just haven't seen that as a taxpayer, as a consumer," she says.
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she → tell → consumer
"Things that have been promised aren't happening, and I'm worried.
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I → promise → ?
I'm worried about my clients; I'm worrying about my kids."
Blue-collar drift
Professor Hopkins says a generation ago, blue-collar workers typically backed the Democrats.
But with the decline of manufacturing and the rise of the culture war, those voters gravitated towards the Republican Party during the Trump era.
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voters → worry → era
"Those are the kinds of people who are also especially being hit by the rise in inflation, the rise in gas prices and diesel prices over the last couple of years," he says.
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he → hit → years
…and 3 more, not listed.
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