Supporters share cautious optimism and anxiety ahead of divisive U.S. election

MILWAUKEE — Tens of thousands of people from opposite sides of the political divide gathered at duelling rallies in Wisconsin on Friday, hosted by Vice-President Kamala Harris and former president Donald Trump as they made a final push for votes in the critical swing state.

“It feels great,” said William Dahms, holding a giant Trump 2024 flag outside the arena in Milwaukee where Trump rallied supporters later that evening. “It’s a beautiful day. I took the day off from work and here I am.”

Republicans and Democrats are both vying for Wisconsin’s 10 electoral college votes. Trump narrowly squeaked out a Wisconsin win in 2016 and it swung back to President Joe Biden in 2020.

The candidates are spending the final weekend before the election in battleground states that could ultimately hold the key to the White House. Concern is mounting in a deeply polarized America as neither candidate shows a significant lead in polling ahead of decision day on Nov. 5.

Most Americans are feeling anxious or frustrated about the presidential campaign, said a poll from the AP-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research earlier this week.

About seven in 10 respondents said their emotional state is “frustrated.” Only about one-third said they felt excited.

The rallies, filled with music and guest speakers, are attended by party faithful who were already likely to cast a ballot next week. But, even among the throngs of cheering crowds, there’s apprehension.

“(I’m) cautiously optimistic and hopeful,” said John Connolly, one of around 75,000 people who went to a Harris rally in Washington, D.C., earlier in the week. “I think I’m still scared by 2016, where there was way too much optimism.”

Harris and Trump have presented divergent visions for the future of America on nearly every main issue. The leaders have pointed to their existential differences repeatedly on the campaign trail.

Trump has embraced increasingly dire rhetoric about the state of the nation, and made his opposition to transgender rights a central theme in the closing days of the campaign. Harris has pushed a theme of hope for a brighter future while also repeating that Trump is a threat to democracy and women’s reproductive rights.

Both presidential candidates have campaigned on protectionist policies that could cause uncertainty for Canadian trade.

While Harris is expected to stay close to the Biden administration’s path on U.S.-Canada relations, she has campaigned on her opposition to Canada-U.S.-Mexico Agreement, saying it didn’t do enough to protect American jobs and the environment.

Trump has said he’ll impose a 10 per cent across-the-board tariff on imports if he gets a second term.

Democrat and Republican supporters hope their party will prevail, but the tight race left a cloud of unease over the rambunctious rallies in the campaign’s final days.

“I’m feeling nervous, considering what happened in 2020 with the election,” said Justina Schwartz at the Republican event. “But I truly think this one is hopefully too big to rig.”

Trump has repeatedly made baseless claims after he lost the 2020 presidential race that the election was “rigged” and that Democrats cheated to put Biden in the White House.

It was Schwartz’s first time attending a Trump rally, but she said she felt compelled to travel to Wisconsin from her home in Illinois because running a business in the current economy was untenable.

Every single vote now matters, said Caryn Fliegler after knocking on doors with Rachel Jacoby for the Democrats’ campaign in Milwaukee.

“We feel good because we were out at the doors. It’s a lot harder when we are home just like doom scrolling. It’s going to obviously be tight,” Fliegler said in nearby Madison earlier this week.

Jacoby said there’s a new energy at doorstops in the Midwest. People recognize the stakes of the election and are researching policies and down-ballot votes in way that she said she hadn’t seen before.

“I’m feeling really good,” she said. “I’m feeling really excited.”

About 13,000 people attended the packed Harris rally in Madison on Wednesday, which saw exuberant chants, American flags and musical performances by Gracie Abrams, Mumford and Sons, and members of The National. As palpable energy filled the building, supporters’ enthusiasm grew.

“I really don’t know anyone that thinks differently than I do,” said 24-year-old Cynthia Feng.

Madison and Milwaukee are historical Democrat strongholds, but there are hundreds of Trump signs along the side of the highway between the two cities and the polarized suburbs could swing Republican.

Like many places in the divided nation, no matter the outcome, Democrat and Republican supporters said neighbours will remain neighbours.

Outside the Trump rally, 15-year-old Tony Perkins felt certain the Republican leader would be the next president.

“Obviously we have a couple who are friends who are on the other side,” he said. “But it’s good because they are able talk to us about this kind of stuff and I don’t have to offend them like everybody else.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 2, 2024.

— With files from The Associated Press

Kelly Geraldine Malone, The Canadian Press