[ad_1]
WASHINGTON: American voters went to the polls on Tuesday (Nov. 3) totally divided on how they view President Donald Trump’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic, but in the places where the virus is most rampant now, Trump enjoyed huge support.
An Associated Press analysis revealed that in 376 counties with the highest number of new cases per capita, the overwhelming majority (93 percent of those counties) elected Trump, a higher rate than other less affected areas.
Most were rural counties in Dakotas, Iowa, Kansas, Montana, Nebraska, and Wisconsin, the types of areas that often have lower rates of adherence to social distancing, mask use, and other public health measures, and have been a focal point for a long time. of the last increase in cases.
Noting the contrast, state health officials paused for a moment of introspection.
Even as they worry about the increasing number of hospitalizations and deaths, they hope to rethink their messages and aim for a reestablishment of public opinion now that the elections are almost over.
Voters wait in line to cast their votes inside the MetraPark event center in Billings, Montana on November 3, 2020. Voters went to the polls completely divided on how they view President Donald Trump’s response to the coronavirus pandemic. But in the places where the virus is most rampant now, Trump enjoyed enormous support. (Photo: AP / Matthew Brown)
Dr. Marcus Plescia of the Association of State and Territorial Health Officials said that public health officials should “step back” and “listen and understand people who are not taking the same position” on the use of masks and other control measures.
“I think there is a possibility that things will become less burdensome and divisive,” he said, adding that there is a possibility that a redesigned public health message could unify Americans around reducing the number of cases so that hospitals are not flooded during the winter months.
LEE: Trump says he ‘easily’ wins the US elections by ‘legal votes’
The electoral divide comes amid an explosion of cases and hospitalizations in the United States and around the world.
The United States broke another record in the seven-day moving average of new cases daily, reaching nearly 90,000.
The new case count on Thursday was more than 120,000, another new record, with massive numbers reported across the country, including a total of about 25,000 in Texas, Illinois and Florida.
Iowa and Indiana also reported more than 4,000 cases each.
The AP’s analysis was limited to counties in which at least 95 percent of precincts had reported results and grouped the counties into six categories based on the rates of COVID-19 cases they had experienced per 100,000 residents.
People queue to vote at the Oyate Community Center in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, on November 3, 2020. Voters went to the polls totally divided on how they view President Donald Trump’s response to the coronavirus pandemic, But in the places where the virus is most rampant now, Trump enjoyed enormous support. (Photo: AP / Erin Bormett, The Argus Leader)
Polls also showed that voters who were divided between Republican Trump and Democrat Joe Biden differed on whether the pandemic was under control.
Among Trump voters, 36 percent described the pandemic as fully or mostly under control, and another 47 percent said it was somewhat under control, according to AP VoteCast, a national poll of more than 110,000 voters conducted for AP. by NORC at the University of Chicago.
Meanwhile, 82 percent of Biden voters said the pandemic was by no means under control.
READ: Biden says he will win the presidency, asks for patience while the votes are counted
The pandemic was considered at least somewhat under control by a slim majority of voters in many red states, including Alabama (60%), Kentucky (55%), Mississippi (58%), Missouri (54%), South Carolina. (56 percent), Tennessee (56 percent) and Texas (55 percent).
In Wisconsin, where the virus soared just before the election, 57 percent said the pandemic was not under control.
In Washington state, where the virus is more under control now compared to the beginning of the year, 55 percent said the same.
Voters in New York and New Hampshire, where the virus is now more under control after the first few waves, were divided in their assessments, similar to voters across the country.
Voters cast their votes at the First Lutheran Church in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, on November 3, 2020. Voters went to the polls totally divided on how they view President Donald Trump’s response to the coronavirus pandemic, but in the places where the virus is most present. rampant now, Trump enjoyed enormous support. (Photo: AP / Erin Bormett, The Argus Leader)
Trump voters interviewed by AP reporters said they value individual freedom and believe the president is doing as well as anyone could in response to the coronavirus.
Michaela Lane, a 25-year-old Republican, dropped off her ballot last week at a polling place in an outdoor mall in Phoenix, Arizona.
He cast his vote for Trump.
“I feel like the most important issue facing the country as a whole is freedom in general,” Lane said. “Infringing on the freedom of the people, the overriding of the government, the overreaching of the government, the chaos in many of the problems that are happening today and just giving the people their rights back.
About half of Trump’s voters rated the economy and jobs as the top problem facing the nation, roughly double the percentage that named the pandemic, according to VoteCast.
By contrast, the majority of Biden’s voters, roughly six in 10, said the pandemic was the biggest problem.
READ: Amid Electoral Uncertainty and Rise in COVID-19, US Economic Recovery Stumbles
In Madison, Wisconsin, Eric Engstrom, a 31-year-old investment analyst, and his wife, Gwen, voted absentee by mail in early October.
Trump’s failure to control the pandemic sealed his vote for Biden, Engstrom said, calling the coronavirus the most immediate threat facing the nation.
He and his wife are expecting their first child, a girl, in January and fear that one or both of them will become ill when the baby is born, he said.
Engstrom called Trump’s response to the virus abysmal.
“If there was any chance of me voting for Trump, it was removed because of the pandemic,” he said.
Voters wait in line at a polling place in Kenosha, Wisconsin, on November 3, 2020. Voters went to the polls totally divided on how they view President Donald Trump’s response to the coronavirus pandemic, but in places where the virus is more rampant now, Trump enjoyed enormous support. (Photo: AP / Wong Maye-E)
The political temperature has added to the stress for public health officials, Dr. Plescia said.
“Our biggest concern is how long can they keep up this pace?” he said.
Since the onset of the pandemic, 74 state and local public health officials in 31 states have resigned, retired or been fired, according to an ongoing analysis by AP and Kaiser Health News.
READ: Elections divide Congress, Republican Party grows stronger while Democrats falter
As the electoral climate dissipates, increased hospitalizations amid colder weather creates “a really pivotal moment” in the pandemic, said Sema Sgaier, executive director of the Surgo Foundation, a nonprofit organization with based in Washington that worked with Ariadne Labs, affiliated with Harvard University, to develop a tool to estimate vaccine needs in states.
“We really need to act together. When I say ‘we’ I mean collectively, ”Sgaier said.
She believes it may be easier to find common ground if one or more of the vaccine candidates are safe and effective and get government approval.
“The vaccine provides the reset button,” he said.
Dr. Anthony Fauci may be another unifying force: According to VoteCast, 73 percent of voters nationwide approve of the way Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, has been handling the pandemic.
Even among Trump voters, 53 percent approve of Fauci’s performance.
About nine out of 10 Biden voters approve of it.
