Rural Wisconsin communities face division and racism fueled by immigration concerns as presidential race tightens

Sauk County is as diverse as its voters. The community includes
farms, outdoor and natural attractions, arts and a robust tourism sector.

As both presidential campaigns vie for votes in Wisconsin, some of the state's rural voters say election rhetoric has become harmfully divisive and tinged with racism, reports Dionne Searcey of The New York Times. In Sauk County, Wisconsin, residents can see their community's partisan divide by tallying neighborhood political yard signs. The heated debates even moved owners of the Square Tavern in Baraboo, the county seat, to "post handwritten notes admonishing customers along the giant mirror behind the bar: 'No Politics and No Religion.'"

While Trump and Harris court all Wisconsin residents to swing to their side, winning over Sauk County voters may be the jewel in the battleground state's rural crown. "Sauk County has been a presidential bellwether in recent years, voting for the winner in the past four elections," Searcey explains. "Sauk County, which is mostly white with a small but growing nonwhite population, has been roiled by its own racial skirmishes in recent years."

Like many Americans, Sauk County voters want the next president to address crime, abortion "and especially immigration," Searcey writes. 

Some Harris supporters "complain that much of Trump’s message is aimed at stoking racist attitudes to earn him votes. Their chief example: Trump’s proclamation from the debate stage that Haitian immigrants are eating cats and dogs." Searcey explains. While Trump's claim is false, it resonates with some Sauk County voters who may fear immigrants. "This summer, a county board meeting turned hostile over worries that refugees might someday settle nearby."

As Harris and Trump stump in pivotal states, how racial and migrant conflicts will be dealt with by the next commander-in-chief matters. Searcey reports, "Trump’s backers say it is Democrats who are using race to win votes, tossing around accusations of racism as a cudgel. His supporters say they are tired of being labeled racist or xenophobic for complaining about urgent issues, in particular immigration."

Meanwhile in places like Baraboo, "the divisions were evident on a recent afternoon of door knocking with Karen DeSanto, a Democrat running for the State Assembly," Searcey adds. "On the same block, three residents had three different ideas about the election: one undecided, one supporting Harris and the other backing Trump. Immigration was on everyone’s mind."