Piedmont voters voice support for their presidential picks

In the 2020 election, former President Donald Trump carried North Carolina by less than 75,000 votes. It was one of his narrowest victories in any state, and with just a few days to go before Election Day, polls show the potential for a similarly tight presidential race this year between Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris. For that reason, both candidates have campaigned in the swing state of North Carolina multiple times, spending millions on political ads.

To find out how the candidates are faring in the Tar Heel State, WFDD’s David Ford and DJ Simmons spread out across the Piedmont to hear from voters on who they’ll be supporting on November 5 and why.

Sampson County Trump voter: "He's on the level that we are"

James Oliver is 57 years old. He and his wife are from Sampson County, North Carolina, between Fayetteville and Wilmington. While vacationing in Boone, they stop to say that they both plan on voting for former President Donald Trump because he loves this country and cares about them.

"What I love about Donald J. Trump is the simple fact that whenever he's speaking, he's not so much speaking in riddles. He is on the level that we are, as far as in his rallies and his talking points and stuff like that. You know where he stands. He loves the people in this country. He wants what's best for this country. And the thing about it is this government that we have is a business. And being that it is a business, what better to have than a multi-millionaire businessman?"

Watauga County Harris voter: "She is not playing to just one base"

Vivian Thompson is a staff member at Appalachian State University in Boone. Her daughter is a student there, and they paused lunch plans to share their thoughts on Vice President Kamala Harris and why she would be a great president.

"It is her ability to be empathetic to the individual and to understand that there's a lot of different aspects of our society that she will have to address. So, she is not playing to just one group, just one base. She's understanding the conservative side. She's understanding the liberal side. She's understanding the vast majority of us who are right in the middle. And she is wanting to build together compromises, and that's the only way to do this."

Forsyth County Trump voter: "He's a businessman and I'm into money"

Solomon Boston works at the Indigo Hotel in downtown Winston-Salem. He's African American and describes himself as both skeptical and contrarian — and isn't sure how he feels about the prospect of a female president.

"I always feel like he's a businessman. I'm into money. I'm into like, prosperity, people having wealth, I support that. So I feel like, because of that, I always supported him anyway, because we already seen what Biden did. What does she even stand for? I don't think she even has a defined objective, like, what is her stance on anything? Like she ... is she conservative? Is she I feel like her ilk, like, in terms of like politicians, they just try to cater to whatever you say, or, you know, whatever the dominant opinion is, and then try to go with that. And they'll switch anytime it suits them. You know, I'm saying, and I don't even know how I feel about a woman president, I don't know."

Alamance County Harris voter: "Anyone but Trump"

Dakota Marcopolos and his wife Lea live in Graham, North Carolina. They and their small children are exiting the Graham Public Library with several books. Neither parent is thrilled with the candidate offerings at the top of the ticket. 

Dakota Marcopolos responds first. "I mean, at this point, with the choices that I have, I think I have a pretty solid idea of who I'm gonna be voting for. I will probably be voting for Harris. I mean, there's small things, but I mean, honestly, at this point, it's really just, you know, anybody but him." His wife Lea agrees: "It really is anyone but Trump, which is unfortunate to have to say that. But yes, it's anyone but Trump!"