As the United States hurtles towards the November election between Democrat Kamala Harris and Republican Donald Trump, AFP has been taking the temperature in key parts of seven battleground states.
Rabun County could be crucial in deciding who gets the 16 electoral college votes available in Georgia state. The candidate who reaches 270 college votes nationwide wins the White House.
Here’s what four Rabun residents said was top of their minds:
– Retiree Patricia ‘Pat’ Poss –
In the garden of her sizeable home in the Georgia woods, Patricia “Pat” Poss wishes for just one thing: freedom.
“Freedom to not just be taxed to death and use your money for your family and for living,” the retired real estate agent told AFP.
Poss, 64, lives in Rabun County, nestled among the Appalachian Mountains in Georgia’s rural northeast.
Among the county’s residents who spoke to AFP, the economy emerged as a priority this election, along with abortion, immigration and the trustworthiness of the voting process.
Georgia is one of the highly scrutinized “swing states” in the election, as it has the potential to swing either for the Democrats or Republicans.
“I think he did a lot of good things,” Poss said, referring to former president Donald Trump.
“Since we are Christians and conservative, we do most of the time vote Republican,” she continued. “So we’ll be voting for Trump.”
Rabun County sits in the heart of the “Bible Belt,” a region with a high concentration of conservative Christian residents.
– Pastor Will Griffin –
One of the big issues Trump gets credited with is the end of federal abortion rights, due to his appointment of three Supreme Court justices while he was president.
“As a Christian, obviously, you know, I believe abortion is evil and is wrong,” said Will Griffin, a Baptist pastor.
Griffin works at a church in Clayton, the largest city in Rabun with a population of about 2,000 residents.
The father of two is far from the only one to hold this opinion in the area, where evangelical Christianity holds a central place in daily life.
“Every life is God’s gift to us,” Griffin explained. “Getting rid of that life is murder, and God’s very clear that murder is evil.”
Georgia holds a unique place in Trump’s electoral history.
After losing the state to Joe Biden in 2020 — a defeat he has never publicly accepted — he is accused of attempting to reverse the results.
A pending trial on his alleged interference awaits him in Georgia, though it is not expected to take place before the election on November 5.
– Churchgoer Elizabeth Adams –
As for Donald Trump’s criminal conviction this year in New York over hush money payments to a porn star?
“The timing of that is political,” said Elizabeth Adams, a 48-year-old church regular, told AFP.
“We’re trying to figure out what’s real and what is political smoke.”
The fear of being manipulated extends to the voting process itself, and Rabun County’s residents said they will be keeping a watchful eye on the election mechanics.
Another issue on the lips of Rabun County: immigration.
“Our southern border concerns me too,” Poss said.
The issue, she explained, is “not so much not letting people come across, but just vetting those people to know why they’re coming.”
Sonia Rendon, a naturalized American from Mexico, conversely believes immigration should be encouraged.
“I love Mexicans and I think Biden is trying to help them the best he can,” she told AFP.
Rendon, who leads a cleaning agency, voted Republican for some 30 years but has switched to the Democratic Party in recent elections.
Among the Appalachian region where the Republican Party dominates, “I keep my mouth shut and I smile,” she said.
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