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Meet the Rural Voters Who Could Swing North Carolina’s Election
The most rural of the battleground states this year is North Carolina. About 3.4 million people, or roughly a third of the state’s population, reside in a rural area, more than in any other state besides Texas.
Democrats have seen their support slip in rural areas, ceding ground to Republicans. As such, rural voters in North Carolina could determine which way the state goes on Election Day, as Democrats hope to curb their losses in these communities and Republicans seek to solidify their grip.
But in interviews with more than 30 people in Wilson County, about 50 miles east of Raleigh, where backcountry roads weave in and out of tobacco fields, many residents told us that they felt both parties often overlooked their concerns, about high prices, underfunded schools and rapid growth from the state capital that is stretching into town.
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The ascension of Vice President Kamala Harris as the Democratic presidential nominee has excited many Democrats in Wilson County, which narrowly voted for President Biden in 2020 and has about 78,000 residents, 40 percent of whom are Black. But voters across the county say that the animus that has plagued national politics feels draining, especially in a small place where people value being able to get along.
The Struggle for Rural Votes
The new chair of the state Democratic Party, Anderson Clayton, has prioritized reconnecting with rural voters since taking office in 2023, arguing that Democrats cannot rely only on cities and suburbs to win.
David Sherrod, a conservative in Wilson who worked at a farm most of his life and is now a mechanic, said that “the politics of both parties have flaws,” including not engaging enough with voters outside major cities. His support, though, is fully behind former President Donald J. Trump.
“I don’t agree with everything he does,” Mr. Sherrod said. “But I feel listened to.”
Even a Democratic voter like Jamar Jones, 29, said he sympathized with neighbors who felt fed up with both camps.
“You should be able to get an abortion and you can own a gun,” Mr. Jones said. “If the two parties are going to be polar opposites on every issue, then it’s just a scam.”
Mr. Sherrod, however, is the kind of voter that North Carolina Democrats have struggled to persuade. Since the ’90s, Republicans have mostly won the state’s rural counties, partly through a message about being left behind. Mr. Trump has continued that trend, even though many voters we spoke to in Wilson acknowledged his flaws.
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Voters in Wilson described feeling alienated and worn down by the emphasis on race and identity in politics. Some white, conservative-leaning voters said they were tired of the Democrats’ focus on race. Mr. Trump has tried to appeal to those voters by stoking resentments about their economic fortunes, at times using racially charged language.
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But many Black and Hispanic voters in Wilson said that addressing racial inequality was important for the country, and that Ms. Harris represented a more racially inclusive America.
“It matters to me that there’s a woman of color with an immigrant background running for president,” said Flor Herrera-Picasso, 33, who remembers her Mexican American family encountering racism while she was growing up in Wilson.
“Obviously it’s not going to mean equality for all yet,” she said, “but it’s a step in the right direction.”
L.G.B.T.Q. Issues and Abortion Stir Debate
Some Democrats we talked to said they worried about preserving gay rights. Many conservatives voiced concerns about the acceptance of transgender people in schools and sports, an issue that has resonated with large swaths of the Republican base.
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Across the political spectrum, however, voters expressed divergent views on one of the top issues in this election: abortion.
Morris Worelds, 72, said he was voting for Ms. Harris because of his support for abortion rights, and dedicating his vote to his four granddaughters.
“To me, Wilson is still a country town, but some things like abortion are irrelevant to country or city,” Mr. Worelds said.
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Despite their differing opinions, many Wilson residents said they valued getting along with their neighbors, in part because there was no political bubble to hide in. Cecilia Coleman and her sister, Megan Coleman, said that at Sylvia’s Family Restaurant, which their parents own, the salesmen who deliver them products were Republicans and their clientele were mostly Democrats.
“Never any problems,” Cecilia Coleman said.
Cecilia and Megan Coleman
This month, hundreds gathered at the Wilson County Fair Truck and Tractor Pull, where drivers in modified vehicles compete to see who can drag a heavy metal sled the farthest on a dirt field.
Watching it all was Kimberly Wade, 46, an independent who said her thoughts about the presidential race could be summarized in one word: “Iffy.”
Ms. Wade, who is undecided, says she has long grown tired of the hyperpartisan attacks clawing away at the country. Ms. Wade’s husband is disabled, and her biggest concern is increasing disability benefits.
But she said one overarching thought would guide her through November: “I just want my community to be OK.”
new video loaded: Minnesota Governor Condemns ICE Shooting
transcript
transcript
Minnesota Governor Condemns ICE Shooting
Governor Tim Walz of Minnesota slammed the fatal shooting of a woman by an immigration agent. President Trump said that the agents had acted in self-defense.
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This morning, we learned that an ICE officer shot and killed someone in Minneapolis. We have been warning for weeks that the Trump administration’s dangerous, sensationalized operations are a threat to our public safety, that someone was going to get hurt. Just yesterday, I said exactly that. What we’re seeing is the consequences of governance designed to generate fear, headlines and conflict. It’s governing by reality TV. And today, that recklessness cost someone their life.
By Jiawei Wang
January 8, 2026
The symbol of the United Nations is displayed outside the Secretariat Building on Feb. 28, 2022, at United Nations Headquarters.
John Minchillo/AP
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John Minchillo/AP
WASHINGTON — The Trump administration will withdraw from dozens of international organizations, including the U.N.’s population agency and the U.N. treaty that establishes international climate negotiations, as the U.S. further retreats from global cooperation.
President Trump on Wednesday signed an executive order suspending U.S. support for 66 organizations, agencies, and commissions, following his administration’s review of participation in and funding for all international organizations, including those affiliated with the United Nations, according to a White House release.
Most of the targets are U.N.-related agencies, commissions and advisory panels that focus on climate, labor, migration and other issues the Trump administration has categorized as catering to diversity and “woke” initiatives. Other non-U.N. organizations on the list include the Partnership for Atlantic Cooperation, the International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance and Global Counterterrorism Forum.
“The Trump Administration has found these institutions to be redundant in their scope, mismanaged, unnecessary, wasteful, poorly run, captured by the interests of actors advancing their own agendas contrary to our own, or a threat to our nation’s sovereignty, freedoms, and general prosperity,” Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in a statement.
Trump’s decision to withdraw from organizations that foster cooperation among nations to address global challenges comes as his administration has launched military efforts or issued threats that have rattled allies and adversaries alike, including capturing autocratic Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro and indicating an intention to take over Greenland.
U.S. builds on pattern of exiting global agencies
The administration previously suspended support from agencies like the World Health Organization, the U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees known as UNRWA, the U.N. Human Rights Council and the U.N. cultural agency UNESCO. It has taken a larger, a-la-carte approach to paying its dues to the world body, picking which operations and agencies it believes align with Trump’s agenda and those that no longer serve U.S. interests.
“I think what we’re seeing is the crystallization of the U.S. approach to multilateralism, which is ‘my way or the highway,’” said Daniel Forti, head of U.N. affairs at the International Crisis Group. “It’s a very clear vision of wanting international cooperation on Washington’s own terms.”
It has marked a major shift from how previous administrations — both Republican and Democratic — have dealt with the U.N., and it has forced the world body, already undergoing its own internal reckoning, to respond with a series of staffing and program cuts.
Many independent nongovernmental agencies — some that work with the United Nations — have cited many project closures because of the U.S. administration’s decision last year to slash foreign assistance through the U.S. Agency for International Development, or USAID.
Despite the massive shift, the U.S. officials, including Trump himself, say they have seen the potential of the U.N. and want to instead focus taxpayer money on expanding American influence in many of the standard-setting U.N. initiatives where there is competition with China, like the International Telecommunications Union, the International Maritime Organization and the International Labor Organization.
The latest global organizations the U.S. is departing
The withdrawal from the U.N. Framework Convention on Climate Change, or UNFCCC, is the latest effort by Trump and his allies to distance the U.S. from international organizations focused on climate and addressing climate change.
UNFCC, the 1992 agreement between 198 countries to financially support climate change activities in developing countries, is the underlying treaty for the landmark Paris climate agreement. Trump — who calls climate change a hoax — withdrew from that agreement soon after reclaiming the White House.
Gina McCarthy, former White House National Climate Adviser, said being the only country in the world not part of the treaty is “shortsighted, embarrassing, and a foolish decision.”
“This Administration is forfeiting our country’s ability to influence trillions of dollars in investments, policies, and decisions that would have advanced our economy and protected us from costly disasters wreaking havoc on our country,” McCarthy, who co-chairs America Is All In, a coalition of climate-concerned U.S. states and cities, said in a statement.
Mainstream scientists say climate change is behind increasing instances of deadly and costly extreme weather, including flooding, droughts, wildfires, intense rainfall events and dangerous heat.
The U.S. withdrawal could hinder global efforts to curb greenhouse gases because it “gives other nations the excuse to delay their own actions and commitments,” said Stanford University climate scientist Rob Jackson, who chairs the Global Carbon Project, a group of scientists that tracks countries’ carbon dioxide emissions.
It will also be difficult to achieve meaningful progress on climate change without cooperation from the U.S., one of the world’s largest emitters and economies, experts said.
The U.N. Population Fund, the agency providing sexual and reproductive health worldwide, has long been a lightning rod for Republican opposition, and Trump cut funding for it during his first term. He and other GOP officials have accused the agency of participating in “coercive abortion practices” in countries like China.
When President Biden took office in January 2021, he restored funding for the agency. A State Department review conducted the following year found no evidence to support GOP claims.
Other organizations and agencies that the U.S. will quit include the Carbon Free Energy Compact, the United Nations University, the International Cotton Advisory Committee, the International Tropical Timber Organization, the Partnership for Atlantic Cooperation, the Pan-American Institute for Geography and History, the International Federation of Arts Councils and Culture Agencies and the International Lead and Zinc Study Group.
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Today’s top stories
President Trump continues to suggest that the U.S. will have a lengthy and active role in Venezuela after capturing the ousted president Nicolás Maduro. Trump has proposed several plans for Venezuela’s future government and economy. In those proposals, U.S. companies are expected to play a key role.
President Trump dances as he departs after speaking during a House Republican retreat at The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts on Jan. 6, 2026, in Washington, DC. House Republicans will discuss their 2026 legislative agenda at the meeting.
Alex Wong/Getty Images
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Alex Wong/Getty Images
- 🎧 Trump and his aides are unclear about the future of Venezuela, NPR’s Franco Ordoñez tells Up First. When the president says the U.S. will run the country, many eyes are on Stephen Miller, Trump’s deputy chief of staff for policy. Miller, known for his stringent immigration policies, is one of the U.S. officials overseeing Venezuela. Ordoñez also says Miller has more recently described ruling over the hemisphere by force.
- ➡️ Last night, Trump posted on social media that Venezuela will turn over between 30 million and 50 million barrels of sanctioned oil to the U.S. While seizing current oil production is one thing, overhauling Venezuela’s oil industry requires a far greater effort. Here’s why.
While meeting with House Republicans yesterday, Trump attempted to offer his party a roadmap to victory in this year’s midterm elections. The president acknowledged the possibility of his party losing the majority in the House this year. Trump said in his speech that the president’s party often loses the midterms.
- 🎧 NPR’s Domenico Montanaro says that while it’s true the midterms are hard on the president’s party, it is even worse when a president’s approval rating is below 50%. Trump is facing his lowest second-term approval ratings, largely due to the rising cost of living. During yesterday’s speech, the president didn’t offer much on the topic. When he did discuss the economy, it was about how the stock market is at historic highs. He also touted his tariffs, which have actively raised prices on many things. People have informed pollsters for months that they believe the president’s policies have harmed the economy. Montanaro says one area where Trump and Republicans could take action is legislation on health care.
The Pentagon is preparing a six-month review to evaluate what it calls the military “effectiveness” of women serving in ground combat roles. Undersecretary Anthony Tata requested that the Army and Marine Corps submit data on the readiness, training, performance, casualties and command climate of ground combat units and personnel by Jan. 15. The effort aims to determine how gender integration has influenced operational success over the last decade.
Special series
Trump has tried to bury the truth of what happened on Jan. 6, 2021. NPR built a visual archive of the attack on the Capitol, showing exactly what happened through the lenses of the people who were there. “Chapter 3: Assault on the Capitol,” lays out the timeline of key moments throughout the day as the riot unfolded.
On the morning of Jan. 6, 2021, Trump held a “Save America” rally at the Ellipse, a site near the White House and U.S. Capitol. Multiple speakers promoted voter fraud myths and urged Vice President Mike Pence to overturn the election. Meanwhile, a group of 200 Proud Boys marched toward the Capitol. Before Trump’s speech ended, violence erupted on Capitol grounds. The Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol “was the most videotaped crime in American history, if not world history,” according to Greg Rosen, a former federal prosecutor who led the Justice Department unit that investigated the riot. But conspiracy theories still falsely label the assault a “normal tourist visit.” NPR’s review of thousands of court videos shows rioters assaulting officers with weapons, calling for executions and looting the building. These videos show the exact timing of events as they occurred. Corresponding maps show the locations where the conflict took place.
To learn more, explore NPR’s database of federal criminal cases from Jan. 6. You can also see more of NPR’s reporting on the topic.
Picture show
The tin soldier, a marionette puppet made by Nicolas Coppola and the main character in “The Steadfast Tin Soldier” show at Puppetworks.
Anh Nguyen for NPR
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Anh Nguyen for NPR
For more than 30 years, Puppetworks has staged classics like The Tortoise and the Hare, Pinocchio, Aladdin and more in Brooklyn’s Park Slope neighborhood. Every weekend, children gather on foam mats and colored blocks to watch wooden renditions of the shows. The company’s founder and artistic director, 90-year-old Nicolas Coppola, has been a professional puppeteer since 1954. The theater has puppets of all types, including marionettes, swing, hand, and rod. They transport attendees back to the 1980s, when most of these puppets were made. Over the years, Coppola has updated the show’s repertoire to better meet the cultural moment. Step inside his world with these images.
3 things to know before you go
This tiny forest in Los Angeles, CA is one of many micro-forests around the world offering green space and contributing to local biodiversity.
Demian Willette/Loyola Marymount University
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Demian Willette/Loyola Marymount University
- Scientists are establishing micro-forests in big cities to boost biodiversity and rejuvenate compromised land. Short Wave producer Rachel Carlson visited California’s largest micro-forest. Tune in to hear her account of the experience.
- The Hungarian arthouse director Béla Tarr has died at 70. He’s best known for his bleak, existential, and challenging films, including Sátántangó.
- While we often associate serendipity with luck or happy accidents, its origin suggests it’s more than just happenstance. This week, NPR’s Word of the Week explores the historical impact of serendipity and offers tips on how to cultivate it.
This newsletter was edited by Suzanne Nuyen.
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