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Drive to Decision Day
NBC News took a road trip along I-80, hitting some of the most competitive congressional districts to find out what’s driving people’s votes in the midterms.
By Jonathan Allen, Frank Thorp V, and Marshall Crook
September 29, 2026
Americans are frustrated with the direction the country is headed as the midterm elections approach — an atmosphere that typically blows up on the party in power.
They’re angry about rising prices, ballooning interest rates and foreign wars. They are afraid that AI will automate many jobs while driving up utility prices.
The perspectives were shared with three NBC News reporters during a six-day, eight-stop August road trip in a minivan along Interstate 80. This “Drive to Decision Day” covered one-third of the most closely contested House races in the nation and two key Senate races.
The aim was to find out what Americans are most concerned about right now and how that might affect their votes in November. Keep scrolling and watch this NBC News Reports documentary to find out.
So from New Jersey to Nebraska, through the Rust Belt and into America’s breadbasket, we talked to voters in longtime battlegrounds, places made more competitive by national trends or redistricting, and seats where the incumbents’ personal lives have become political challenges.
Many voters in each region say they have lost faith in federal elected officials to solve major problems.
“You take every politician in Washington, you put them all in a bag and start hitting the bag with a baseball bat — you hit the right person,” said Rich Seitz, the leader of a New Jersey motorcycle club.
So from New Jersey to Nebraska, through the Rust Belt and into America’s breadbasket, we talked to voters in longtime battlegrounds, places made more competitive by national trends or redistricting, and seats where the incumbents’ personal lives have become political challenges.
Many voters in each region say they have lost faith in federal elected officials to solve major problems.
“You take every politician in Washington, you put them all in a bag and start hitting the bag with a baseball bat — you hit the right person,” said Rich Seitz, the leader of a New Jersey motorcycle club.
Rep. Tom Kean, R-N.J., is fighting for re-election in New Jersey’s 7th — the state’s only true battleground district — a mix of small cities, bedroom communities and sprawling farmland that runs from the Rahway River in the east to the Pennsylvania border in the west.
Beyond the normal challenges Republicans are facing this cycle, Kean needs to convince voters that they should return him to office after he missed four months of work while tending to a mental health issue. He did not tell his constituents where he had been until he returned from his absence.
He has little room for error: He won by 5.4% here in 2024 while Donald Trump defeated then-Vice President Kamala Harris in the district by just 1.2%.
Rep. Tom Kean, R-N.J., is fighting for re-election in New Jersey’s 7th — the state’s only true battleground district — a mix of small cities, bedroom communities and sprawling farmland that runs from the Rahway River in the east to the Pennsylvania border in the west.
Beyond the normal challenges Republicans are facing this cycle, Kean needs to convince voters that they should return him to office after he missed four months of work while tending to a mental health issue. He did not tell his constituents where he had been until he returned from his absence.
He has little room for error: He won by 5.4% here in 2024 while Donald Trump defeated then-Vice President Kamala Harris in the district by just 1.2%.
Janet Zymroz, 92, a solid Republican who voted for Trump three times and for Kean, says she’ll vote for the congressman again over Democrat Rebecca Bennett, a Navy veteran.
“I’m glad he went to get help,” Zymroz said as she sat at the bar in the Roxbury Diner.
Kean is also dealing with the political fallout of Trump’s mass deportation campaign, with the Hispanic community comprising nearly 15% of the district’s population.
Gloria Mendez, 29, a social worker and Democratic voter from Wharton, said she’s felt an anti-Trump surge among Hispanic voters and said she believes Kean should prioritize his own mental health over another term in Congress.
“He should work on himself first,” she said.
Janet Zymroz, 92, a solid Republican who voted for Trump three times and for Kean, says she’ll vote for the congressman again over Democrat Rebecca Bennett, a Navy veteran.
“I’m glad he went to get help,” Zymroz said as she sat at the bar in the Roxbury Diner.
Kean is also dealing with the political fallout of Trump’s mass deportation campaign, with the Hispanic community comprising nearly 15% of the district’s population.
Gloria Mendez, 29, a social worker and Democratic voter from Wharton, said she’s felt an anti-Trump surge among Hispanic voters and said she believes Kean should prioritize his own mental health over another term in Congress.
“He should work on himself first,” she said.
Rich Seitz, 58, at Roxbury Diner in Roxbury, N.J., and Gloria Mendez, 29, at Cliff's Homemade Ice Cream in Ledgewood, N.J.
Rich Seitz, 58, at Roxbury Diner in Roxbury, N.J., and Gloria Mendez, 29, at Cliff's Homemade Ice Cream in Ledgewood, N.J.
Rich Seitz, 58, at Roxbury Diner in Roxbury, N.J., and Gloria Mendez, 29, at Cliff's Homemade Ice Cream in Ledgewood, N.J.
Rich Seitz, 58, at Roxbury Diner in Roxbury, N.J., and Gloria Mendez, 29, at Cliff's Homemade Ice Cream in Ledgewood, N.J.
Louis Marcelino, a three-time Trump voter from Hazleton, describes the president as being out of touch with the economic needs of Americans.
“Everything has just gotten more expensive,” Marcelino, 38, said at a barber shop here in the 8th District, which covers the coal-rich northeastern part of the state, including Scranton and Wilkes-Barre. “I don’t think he realizes it, but every single American here is paying the price for that war,” he said, referring to the Iran war.
Lynda Schoeninger outside Nazareth Diner in Nazareth, Pa.
Lynda Schoeninger outside Nazareth Diner in Nazareth, Pa.
Louis Marcelino, a three-time Trump voter from Hazleton, describes the president as being out of touch with the economic needs of Americans.
“Everything has just gotten more expensive,” Marcelino, 38, said at a barber shop here in the 8th District, which covers the coal-rich northeastern part of the state, including Scranton and Wilkes-Barre. “I don’t think he realizes it, but every single American here is paying the price for that war,” he said, referring to the Iran war.
Lynda Schoeninger outside Nazareth Diner in Nazareth, Pa.
Lynda Schoeninger outside Nazareth Diner in Nazareth, Pa.
It’s hard to imagine a scenario in which Democrats take control of the House without flipping at least one competitive district in the Keystone State.
Republicans think they will likely have to juice MAGA turnout to help incumbents such as Rep. Rob Bresnahan in the 8th District and Rep. Ryan Mackenzie in the 7th District, which is centered in Pennsylvania’s Lehigh Valley. That has been some of the most competitive political turf in the country in the Trump era.
It’s hard to imagine a scenario in which Democrats take control of the House without flipping at least one competitive district in the Keystone State.
Republicans think they will likely have to juice MAGA turnout to help incumbents such as Rep. Rob Bresnahan in the 8th District and Rep. Ryan Mackenzie in the 7th District, which is centered in Pennsylvania’s Lehigh Valley. That has been some of the most competitive political turf in the country in the Trump era.
There are signs of Republican drift in the 7th District, too, where Rich Ehrhardt, a 55-year-old businessman from Nazareth, said Trump hasn’t lived up to expectations.
“I think he went against some of his promises,” Ehrhardt, a three-time Trump voter, said. “Don’t make up things that we want to hear.”
There are signs of Republican drift in the 7th District, too, where Rich Ehrhardt, a 55-year-old businessman from Nazareth, said Trump hasn’t lived up to expectations.
“I think he went against some of his promises,” Ehrhardt, a three-time Trump voter, said. “Don’t make up things that we want to hear.”
Ohio promises to be an important state in showing just how much the partisan playing field has shifted over two years. In the Trump era, it has been reliably Republican. But polls show that former Sen. Sherrod Brown, a Democrat, is running neck and neck with Sen. Jon Husted, R-Ohio.
Katie Heinz, a 49-year-old interior designer from Medina, a leafy Republican enclave southwest of Cleveland, has not lost faith in Trump.
But the local congressman in Ohio’s 7th District, Republican Rep. Max Miller, is another story. He’s denied allegations of domestic abuse in a district that likely would not have been closely contested without them.
Heinz said that while she doesn’t know what happened in the Miller household, the controversy makes it impossible for him to do his job adequately.
“What he’s got going on in his personal world, unfortunately, is going to roll over into his day to day, and we need to get things done,” she said of Miller. She said she doesn’t think she’ll vote for Miller — but she’s also not sure yet if she will vote for the Democrat, Brian Poindexter, or leave that part of her ballot blank.
Ohio promises to be an important state in showing just how much the partisan playing field has shifted over two years. In the Trump era, it has been reliably Republican. But polls show that former Sen. Sherrod Brown, a Democrat, is running neck and neck with Sen. Jon Husted, R-Ohio.
Katie Heinz, a 49-year-old interior designer from Medina, a leafy Republican enclave southwest of Cleveland, has not lost faith in Trump.
But the local congressman in Ohio’s 7th District, Republican Rep. Max Miller, is another story. He’s denied allegations of domestic abuse in a district that likely would not have been closely contested without them.
Heinz said that while she doesn’t know what happened in the Miller household, the controversy makes it impossible for him to do his job adequately.
“What he’s got going on in his personal world, unfortunately, is going to roll over into his day to day, and we need to get things done,” she said of Miller. She said she doesn’t think she’ll vote for Miller — but she’s also not sure yet if she will vote for the Democrat, Brian Poindexter, or leave that part of her ballot blank.
In the 9th District, which is anchored by Toledo, close observers of the political process said they would be surprised, but not shocked, if Rep. Marcy Kaptur, a Democrat who was first elected in 1982, gets toppled by Republican Derek Merrin in a rematch from 2024. The district was made more Republican in redistricting, but the political wind may have changed directions.
“Just like in the last election, you saw a lot of Democrats vote Republican, I think it may flip a little back this time,” said Stephen Anderson, a Toledo barber who said he gained his perspective from talking to his customers.
In the 9th District, which is anchored by Toledo, close observers of the political process said they would be surprised, but not shocked, if Rep. Marcy Kaptur, a Democrat who was first elected in 1982, gets toppled by Republican Derek Merrin in a rematch from 2024. The district was made more Republican in redistricting, but the political wind may have changed directions.
“Just like in the last election, you saw a lot of Democrats vote Republican, I think it may flip a little back this time,” said Stephen Anderson, a Toledo barber who said he gained his perspective from talking to his customers.
Tamara Clark speaks with NBC News reporter Jonathan Allen in Toledo, Ohio.
Tamara Clark speaks with NBC News reporter Jonathan Allen in Toledo, Ohio.
Tamara Clark speaks with NBC News reporter Jonathan Allen in Toledo, Ohio.
Tamara Clark speaks with NBC News reporter Jonathan Allen in Toledo, Ohio.
In addition to basic inflation and concern about the Iran war, Iowa farmers are contending with Trump trade policies that have roiled global commodity markets and made farming more expensive.
That has helped put an open Senate seat in play — where Republican Rep. Ashley Hinson is squaring off against Democratic state Rep. Josh Turek — along with two Republican-held House seats. If there’s a big enough Democratic wave, a third House seat could flip.
In addition to basic inflation and concern about the Iran war, Iowa farmers are contending with Trump trade policies that have roiled global commodity markets and made farming more expensive.
That has helped put an open Senate seat in play — where Republican Rep. Ashley Hinson is squaring off against Democratic state Rep. Josh Turek — along with two Republican-held House seats. If there’s a big enough Democratic wave, a third House seat could flip.
David Quakenbush, 72, and his wife Dorothy, outside the Gypsy Highway bar in Davenport, Iowa.
David Quakenbush, 72, and his wife Dorothy, outside the Gypsy Highway bar in Davenport, Iowa.
David Quakenbush, a 72-year-old retiree in Davenport, said he will vote for Hinson in the Senate race and Republicans up and down the ballot after switching over from the Democratic Party years ago. He said the Democrats are being taken over by their left flank, and that’s too extreme for him.
“One thing we don’t need here is socialism,” he said.
David Quakenbush, 72, and his wife Dorothy, outside the Gypsy Highway bar in Davenport, Iowa.
David Quakenbush, 72, and his wife Dorothy, outside the Gypsy Highway bar in Davenport, Iowa.
David Quakenbush, a 72-year-old retiree in Davenport, said he will vote for Hinson in the Senate race and Republicans up and down the ballot after switching over from the Democratic Party years ago. He said the Democrats are being taken over by their left flank, and that’s too extreme for him.
“One thing we don’t need here is socialism,” he said.
A pair of Republican incumbents are trying to hold off tough challenges in two districts: the 1st, where eastern farmland surrounds population hubs along the Mississippi River and at the University of Iowa, and the 3rd, which runs from Des Moines almost to the Nebraska border.
In the 1st, Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks is hoping to pull off a third straight victory against Democrat Christina Bohannan.
Jordan Cloe at the Iowa State Fair in Des Moines.
Jordan Cloe at the Iowa State Fair in Des Moines.
A pair of Republican incumbents are trying to hold off tough challenges in two districts: the 1st, where eastern farmland surrounds population hubs along the Mississippi River and at the University of Iowa, and the 3rd, which runs from Des Moines almost to the Nebraska border.
In the 1st, Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks is hoping to pull off a third straight victory against Democrat Christina Bohannan.
Jordan Cloe at the Iowa State Fair in Des Moines.
Jordan Cloe at the Iowa State Fair in Des Moines.
Darcey Liljequist, a 75-year-old retired nurse’s aide, says she’ll back Miller-Meeks again. But, after voting for Trump three times, she thinks he’s forgotten folks like her.
“Get more of a reality of what people are living like,” she said she would tell Trump. “Go live with a senior citizen living on $1,500 a month in Social Security.”
Darcey Liljequist, a 75-year-old retired nurse’s aide, says she’ll back Miller-Meeks again. But, after voting for Trump three times, she thinks he’s forgotten folks like her.
“Get more of a reality of what people are living like,” she said she would tell Trump. “Go live with a senior citizen living on $1,500 a month in Social Security.”
Nebraska’s Omaha-based 2nd District is known in political circles as “the blue dot” because Democratic presidential candidates have won it in three of the last five elections, even though the state and region have been reliably Republican red. The local congressman, Rep. Don Bacon, has held it down for the GOP in the House for three terms.
But Bacon is retiring, and national prognosticators think Democrats have a slight edge here.
Larry and Sally Guest recently moved to Omaha from the conservative Sandhills of north-central Nebraska, which landed them smack in the middle of a tooth-and-nail fight between Democrat Denise Powell, a small-business owner, and Republican Brinker Harding, who sits in a nonpartisan seat on the city council.
They don’t know much about Powell, but they’re Democrats, and they are excited to vote for her. Sally, a registered nurse, said the Trump economy is crushing her and her co-workers.
“The vast majority of nurses that I know have not just one, but actually two jobs, because even with nursing wages being the highest in memorable history, the cost of living is so high that you need that second job for a safety net,” she said.
Sally Guest in Omaha, Neb.
Sally Guest in Omaha, Neb.
Nebraska’s Omaha-based 2nd District is known in political circles as “the blue dot” because Democratic presidential candidates have won it in three of the last five elections, even though the state and region have been reliably Republican red. The local congressman, Rep. Don Bacon, has held it down for the GOP in the House for three terms.
But Bacon is retiring, and national prognosticators think Democrats have a slight edge here.
Larry and Sally Guest recently moved to Omaha from the conservative Sandhills of north-central Nebraska, which landed them smack in the middle of a tooth-and-nail fight between Democrat Denise Powell, a small-business owner, and Republican Brinker Harding, who sits in a nonpartisan seat on the city council.
They don’t know much about Powell, but they’re Democrats, and they are excited to vote for her. Sally, a registered nurse, said the Trump economy is crushing her and her co-workers.
Sally Guest in Omaha, Neb.
Sally Guest in Omaha, Neb.
“The vast majority of nurses that I know have not just one, but actually two jobs, because even with nursing wages being the highest in memorable history, the cost of living is so high that you need that second job for a safety net,” she said.
Chris Holder, a 45-year-old business analyst at Union Pacific who backed Trump three times, said he hasn’t locked in yet on the House race but will “probably hit the Republican button” for Harding.
But in the state’s Senate race, where incumbent Republican Pete Ricketts is facing independent Dan Osborn, Holder may vote against type.
“I haven’t really vetted Osborn a whole bunch, but I’m giving him consideration,” he said. “Like, working man, union guy, seems grounded in the ways of Nebraska — an outsider.”
Chris Holder, a 45-year-old business analyst at Union Pacific who backed Trump three times, said he hasn’t locked in yet on the House race but will “probably hit the Republican button” for Harding.
But in the state’s Senate race, where incumbent Republican Pete Ricketts is facing independent Dan Osborn, Holder may vote against type.
“I haven’t really vetted Osborn a whole bunch, but I’m giving him consideration,” he said. “Like, working man, union guy, seems grounded in the ways of Nebraska — an outsider.”
Photography and Video Production:
Frank Thorp V and Marshall Crook
Senior Photo Editor:
Elise Wrabetz
Design and Art Direction:
Justine Goode
Photo and Art Direction:
Zara Katz and Chelsea Stahl
