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Some key voters say deep frustration and disappointment with President Trump are motivating their election plans just weeks before Election Day.
NPR observed two online focus groups Tuesday night with 12 Georgians who voted for President Biden in 2020 and then supported Trump in 2024.
Almost every voter — 11 out of 12 — said they were disappointed with the overall job Trump has been doing. And 10 said they regret voting for him.
"I've been disappointed," said Charles P., 43, who identified as a Democrat. (The voters participated under the condition their last names would not be used.)
"I just don't feel like there's any positive to this administration at all," he continued. "Inflation has only gotten worse, there've been more wars. The tariffs haven't done anything. It seems like we have more enemies now than ever. I just don't see anything positive with his tenure."
Richard A., a 56-year-old Republican, said he's been out of work for 10 months and there is a long list of problems he sees with the direction of the country under Trump.
"Food crisis, starting the war with Iran, inflation," he said. "ICE immigration has just torn families apart, has caused deaths. ... It just seems like everything has gone downhill."
The comments align with Trump's faltering approval rating and a darkening midterm outlook for Republicans. Trump has picked up his campaign travel in recent days, touting his record and arguing for the GOP to retain control in Washington.
These focus groups with swing voters are conducted every month in battleground states across the country. They are run by messaging firm Engagious and market research recruiting firm Nelson Recruiting. NPR partners with them each month as part of the Swing Voter Project.
Focus groups are not scientifically significant like polls, but they do provide insight into what voters are thinking. And in this case, they provide some insight into how voters are deciding who they are supporting this fall.
Swinging to Democrats
Rich Thau, president of Engagious, moderates these focus groups. He said for the first time this year, a majority of swing voters said Trump was going to influence their midterm decisions.
"In previous months, when we asked people whether President Trump would influence how they vote, they would say things like, 'Well, I'm looking mainly at the candidates themselves,' or 'I'm looking at the overall sort of environment in the country,'" Thau said.
"This month, seven out of 12 said that he would influence them to vote for Democrats. And that was new."
Karla S., a 49-year-old Democrat, was one of those seven.
"I did vote Republican for 2024," she said. "I made up my mind. I've been so disappointed that I'm just going to go straight and just do Democrat, Democrat, Democrat. Because I'm so disappointed with how this administration has been doing."
Cedric, a 41-year-old independent, said he won't be voting for any politicians that are closely aligned with Trump.
"I think we're not going in the right direction, so I don't want to vote for a candidate that's not going to stand up to him or they're going to go along with his policies," he said. "I'm looking for something different."
Ten out of the 12 participants said they plan on voting for Georgia incumbent Democratic Sen. Jon Ossoff. Some voters said they wanted to keep him in office specifically because he wouldn't be aligned with Trump.
Restoring order
Thau said some voters felt that if Democrats take control of Congress, it could provide some needed stability to the country — and the economy, in particular.
"There was some sense that Democrats could restore some semblance of order, and that they'd be able to control a bit of what the president is trying to do or has been doing, to the point where that might restore some of their confidence in the economy," he said.
That's what Thomas M., a 65-year-old independent voter, said is his expectation of a Democratic-run Congress.
"I think there would be more controls placed on Trump with people who are not afraid to stand up to him," he said.
In contrast, if Republicans retain power, Thau said "some respondents told us they thought that the president would have even more control over what goes on because Republicans are afraid to stand up to him."
Jennifer W., a 43-year-old Republican, said she worries "Trump would have free rein."
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