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American voters focused on immigration, abortion on election day

Online Niel November 5, 2024

After months of campaigning, Tuesday’s presidential election may have come down to the two issues that have defined Democrat Kamala Harris and Republican Donald Trump from the start: abortion rights and immigration.

In more than 65 interviews in recent days, voters have returned to these themes in explaining their choice for president. For many, personal experiences—as a parent, neighbor, or friend—shaped their views of what was most important.

Although the sample was too small to draw firm conclusions from, it provides a snapshot of how Americans might have thought in the last days of the campaign.

For Trump supporters, the need to stop illegal immigration — a central theme of his presidency — was the No. 1 reason to vote Republican, according to those surveyed. Economic concerns and high inflation were often cited as other issues motivating Trump’s supporters, even as the US economy continues to grow and the unemployment rate remains low.

“I know a lot of people who personally struggled under the Biden administration,” said Justin Newhouse, 23, a self-described conservative from Milwaukee.

For many Harris supporters, her vow to protect abortion rights after the US Supreme Court overturned the landmark 1973 ruling that recognized a constitutional right to the procedure was the most compelling reason to vote for the Democratic vice president. The perception that Trump, who has frequently made racist and offensive remarks, was racist was also often the most important.

The interviews were conducted in the battleground states where the campaign is expected to be won or lost: Pennsylvania, North Carolina, Georgia, Nevada, Arizona, Michigan and Wisconsin. Here’s some of what voters had to say about their choice:

US Presidential Election Race: Donald Trump and Kamala Harris (Illustrative) (Credit: SHUTTERSTOCK)

“The border was crazy”

Heather Thomas, a 49-year-old convenience store worker near the Las Vegas Strip in Nevada, said the key issue behind her vote for Trump was illegal immigration and what she described as the economic and societal devastation it has caused. bring her

“Open border means the end of our country,” Thomas said. “And with Biden and the other Democrats, the borders were crazy, just wide open.”

Thomas, who makes $13 an hour, said he thinks Democrats have done little about illegal immigration, even as the Biden administration has taken steps to reduce border crossings.

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“How is the country supposed to take care of millions of people coming here illegally when we don’t even take care of so many Americans living on the streets and struggling to eat?” asked Thomas.

Thomas said that in her daily interactions with the poor and homeless people in her store, she saw a lot of suffering.

Change of heart

Myesha Parks, who works as a dental hygienist in Rocky Mount, North Carolina, endorsed Harris primarily because of the candidate’s position in abortionand because she was “never a Trump fan.”

Parks is a 27-year-old practicing Baptist who grew up anti-abortion. But her views began to change after two friends were raped. “If that ever happened to me, I don’t think I’d be strong enough to carry a baby on my own,” she said.

Parks believes Harris, as a woman, is better suited to address an issue like abortion: “Men shouldn’t be allowed to tell women what to do with their bodies.”

“I want a wall”

Judy Boyce, a retired flight attendant from Marietta, Georgia, voted for Trump, as she did in 2016 and 2020, citing border security and the economy. She sees issues as connected.

“We’re rooting for illegal aliens so much. I’m being politically incorrect, but that’s who they are, they’re not American,” she said. Boyce, 79, said the money should instead go to American citizens.

“I want a wall and I want illegal immigration to zero. I want this economy to go back to when Donald Trump was president.”

“My Own Body”

Sarah Weigel, a 46-year-old event coordinator in the rural town of Franklin, Pennsylvania, says she is not very politically engaged, but will vote for Harris this year to protect abortion rights.

She said the 2022 U.S. Supreme Court decision, which overturned Roe v. Wade, who championed abortion rights, pushed her to vote.

“For me, I think it means being able to choose what I want to do with my own body,” Weigel said. “So whether or not a woman wanted to have an abortion, she should have the right to make that decision for herself.”

‘Betrayal’

Terry Balko, a part-time charity fundraiser in Marietta, Georgia, voted early for Donald Trump, his choice in the last two elections.

Over breakfast in a cafe near his home, Balko said he wanted “less inflation, a safer country” and to deport illegal immigrants.

Balko became animated when discussing the issue, citing the case of Laken Riley, a 22-year-old student who was killed in February, a case Trump often refers to in his campaign speeches. The suspect, a Venezuelan illegally in the US, has pleaded not guilty to the murder charges.

“Biden and Harris are totally derelict in protecting our citizens,” Balko said. “They should be bought off on charges of treason.”

Fear of being targeted

Stephanie Lopez Gilmore, 39, who works at a health and mental health center in Detroit, said she voted for Harris to protect women’s reproductive rights. He’s also looking forward to having a black woman in the Oval Office.

“Being a black woman myself, it’s very inspiring to see someone who looks like you and who maybe has the same interests as you and who is going to lead the country,” she said.

Lopez Gilmore, who is of both Latino and black descent, said she fears a Trump’s victory would lead to an increase in the discrimination they commonly experience.

“Submit Against Racism”

Noel Soto, a 32-year-old truck driver originally from Mexico, said he cast his first vote as an American citizen for Harris with one clear goal: to take a stand against racism.

“I don’t like Trump’s side because of racism. I did it for my Mexican family,” Soto said in Spanish at a rodeo in Phoenix organized by Democrats to get out the Latino vote.

Soto said he was concerned about what he felt was more racism around him, especially from Trump supporters. He recounted an episode in which he said a Trump supporter asked him, while trick-or-treating on Halloween, if he was dressed as “a Latino immigrant.” Soto had dressed up as a farmer to mate with his one-year-old son, who left as a cow.