This midterm election was presidential in almost every way – the line-forming turnout, the deep partisan divisions and the near-universal issue on virtually every voters’ mind – Donald Trump.
Never mind that Pennsylvanians were electing a governor, a senator and congress members. All the talk after casting their ballots centered on the controversial Commander-in-Chief, though his name was nowhere to be found anywhere at the polls.
Whether for Trump or against him, midstate voters were intent upon sending a message straight to the White House.
“He’s disgusting,” said Janardan Neupani, 27, of Hampden Township, of Trump.
An American for seven years now, Neupani intended his vote as a start toward restoring the country that once welcomed him.
“I don’t like the things he’s doing against the refugees and against the immigrants – people like us,” he said. “I voted for Democrats.”
Ray Oberheim, 67, also of Hampden Township, came to the polls with the exact opposite motivation -- yet the same name on his mind.
“I want to continue the Trump agenda,” Oberheim said. “That’s what I’m concerned with. I’ve seen America turn for the better and I Want to keep going in that direction.”
As for the president’s rhetoric Neupani finds so disgusting, Oberheim said he’s pleased with the state of today’s political discourse.
“It’s exactly what I voted for,” he said. “I think the climate is bad because so many people don’t like it. They don’t like Washington being shaken up like this. That’s what people who voted for Trump and his acolytes want. They want Washington shaken up. They want the swamp drained.”
And so it went. As central Pennsylvanians streamed to the polls in surprising numbers despite the rain streaming down much of the day, everyone it seemed had an opinion on the president that was motivating their vote in the midterm election.
There were energized Democrats eager to exercise their voting rights in opposition to Trump.
There were a few repulsed Republicans pulling the straight Democratic ticket to register their conservative’s concern for their party and their president.
And then there were the Trump loyalists, out to use their midterm vote for the GOP as a full, enthusiastic endorsement.
All had their reasons, and their vote was their voice.
“I think it will be a much better world with a Democrat,” said Calvin Lyles, 64. So he pulled the lever on a straight party ticket in Susquehanna Township.
The sentiment was shared by Kijuanna Wilson-Ewell outside the same polling place.
“The world is in a crazy state right now, let’s just be honest,” she said. “I just think it is very important for people to have their voices heard.”
James Welcomr, 72, is typically a ticket-splitting registered Democrat in Lower Paxton Township. But today he had no patience left for the Trump-touting GOP, regardless of the race or the candidate.
“I’m tired of the Republicans, period,” he said. They don’t seem to have much of a spine. I’m worried about the rights in our Constitution. When I have a president in there that thinks he can just sign an executive order and change the 14th amendment (regarding birthright citizenship), that bothers me.”
The revulsion for Republicans wasn’t unique to Democrats.
Lawrence Spitz, 58, of Susquehanna broke his party allegiance by casting a straight Democratic ticket in repudiation of the president and the party supporting him.
“I see what is going on,” he said, noting his deep concerns cover everything from healthcare to the tone and tenor in Washington, D.C.
Tone was also on the minds of some younger voters, but it was anything but music to their ears.
Democrat Jen McGeorge in Susquehanna Township summed up her vote by saying simply, “Stop the intolerance.”
“We want to have a more open country,” added Toni Hogan, 22, who voted Democrat with Jacob Kintzer, also 22, in East Pennsboro Township.
“There’s obviously a lot of divisiveness, and we want to have more acceptance,” she added. “There is a lot of hate going on.”
“I have four kids, so I feel like for these kids, especially, I am determined to vote,” said Janine Smith, a Democrat, who went to three East Pennsboro polling places attempting to track down where she was registered following a recent move.
Asked why she was so motivated, Smith added, “Trump scares me. We need more Democratic Congressmen out there.”
Aaron Stoudt, 38, of Swatara Township, was looking to balance the political scales by voting Democrat.
He put it much more bluntly, saying “A check on Trump, for sure.”
Thus, George Scott got his vote for Congress.
“I really think it’s most important that there is a balance in government,” Stoudt added. “It can’t just all be Trump and Republican House, Republican Senate.”
Meanwhile, many GOP voters piled to the polls with the diametrically opposite intention. They sought to bolster their president with Republican reinforcements so Trump could do even more things, such as build their beloved “Wall” on the southern border.
Vietnam vet Michael Fure, 68, of Swatara Township mentioned everything from immigration to the stubborn resistance by Democrats as reasons for voting Republican. Yet, even he didn’t pretend his president was perfect.
“I like Trump,” he said. “The only thing is sometimes he sticks his foot in his mouth. I like him but sometimes he doesn’t know when to shut up.”
As a result, Fure said Lou Barletta got his vote for U.S. Senate, saying he’s liked the candidate’s tough immigration stance ever since Barletta was mayor of Hazleton.
Not so Adele Frullani, 52, in the same township.
She went with Sen. Bob Casey, along with every other Democrat on the ballot, saying Pennsylvania’s seniors, sick people and the “little guy” can’t afford to lose someone so valuable. Besides, she added, Trump needs to be fully investigated and says only Dems will get the job done.
Two years ago, Martin Horning, 55, of Susquehanna Township, said he voted for Trump mainly because he didn’t like Hillary Clinton.
Two years later, he cast a straight Republican ticket to surround his new favorite president with more like-minded legislators.
“I’m glad I voted for him for president,” he said. “I believe he screws up, but not any worse than anyone else. And sometimes, he is dead-on.”
Republican poll worker Helen Brooks of East Pennsboro didn’t have much luck passing out her campaign literature for her party’s state and congressional candidates.
A polarized Pa. electorate came to the polls with their minds made up, she said.
“The people coming out seem very determined,” Brooks said. “They seem to know how they want to vote. There is no, ‘I don’t know, I’m not sure.’ They know.”
This included Brooks, herself.
“I voted for him initially, but I wasn’t sure,” she said of Trump.
“This time, there is a sense of urgency,” Brooks added. “I have to be there. I have to vote. The turnout is like another presidential election. For me, personally, it’s about the impact President Trump has had.”
On Tuesday, she was in good company among the Trump-loving and loathing throngs who poured to the polls in Pennsylvania – and across the country.
The people have spoken. Now it’s a matter of making sense of the message.
Staff writers Sue Gleiter and Sean Adams contributed to this report.