Opinion | The Economy, Immigration and Regret: 12 Trump Voters Discuss

Natan, 19, Ore., Black, Republican, student

Disappointed and sad.

Kitty, 36, Pa., Asian, independent, student

Disappointed and hopeful.

Michelle, 45, Md., Latina, Republican, construction administration

Concerned.

Alla, 51, Ala., white, Republican, portfolio manager

Worried.

Jose, 62, Fla., Latino, independent, employment specialist

Anxious.

Pamela, 65, Tenn., white, Republican, small business owner

Frustrated.

Daniel, 41, Calif., Latino, independent, manufacturing

Annoyed.

Argenis, 35, Fla., Latino, independent, HVAC sales

Discouraged.

Chris, 42, Ill., white, Republican, electrician

Surprised and discouraged.

Nancy, 55, Ariz., white, independent, operations

Concerned.

John, 62, Md., white, Republican, packaging specialist

Apathetic.

Franceska, 26, Wash., mixed race, independent, deckhand

Betrayed.

Kitty, 36, Pa., Asian, independent, student

So much has happened. We’re starting to see; we’re getting disillusioned. And all these false promises are starting to be like, we know it for what it is now. Now that we know and we don’t feel as naïve or trusting, then we can properly create a path forward to going in better directions.

Chris, 42, Ill., white, Republican, electrician

Life is becoming more and more unaffordable. The prices of things like gasoline and food overall haven’t come down. I thought it all would just be a lot more affordable.

John, 62, Md., white, Republican, packaging specialist

I think the government is apathetic and not necessarily in tune with our concerns as citizens. But then I’m somewhat apathetic in that same regard because I’m just a guy. I vent with my friends, I vent with my family. In the scheme of things, is it going to move the needle? Probably not, but it’s nice.

Franceska, 26, Wash., mixed race, independent, deckhand

We were made a lot of promises during the election. I know that it’s only been a year and a half, but I don’t think I’ve really seen much progress toward even moving toward what he said he was going to do, such as tax breaks or, let’s see, helping with the education system. I feel like he just defunded a lot of the education systems, the schools. I don’t know why he made so many promises.

Franceska, 26, Wash., mixed race, independent, deckhand

I think it’s just, I guess, how it is. As I’ve grown up, it hasn’t really gotten any better. It’s hard to get a home. I’ve been in apartments for forever. I don’t really see any hope for that kind of thing.

Daniel, 41, Calif., Latino, independent, manufacturing

Well, living in California, our governor, it’s just all false promises. All these additional taxes that are coming out. Money’s not being well spent. Just no accountability whatsoever. And with the current administration, it’s something new every week. DOGE, Venezuela, immigration, Iran. This week, the president’s feuding with the pope. I’m very disappointed. And I served in the military. There’s a reason why I voted for Trump. Usually Republicans are pro-military. But this whole conflict with Iran is just uncalled for.

Nancy, 55, Ariz., white, independent, operations

Well, I’m an independent. Frankly, I just wasn’t a fan of Kamala. It was the lesser of two evils. I could have written in somebody, but I felt like I had a better chance of a little hope with Trump. I was hoping that Congress and other branches would keep him in check, and that he’d have better advisers, and that maybe the second go-around, he’d learn some lessons. But it seems like it’s just total chaos.

Alla, 51, Ala., white, Republican, portfolio manager

When he was saying he would try to fix immigration, I was behind it. But then the way he did it, it’s just not the way I agree with.

Alla, 51, Ala., white, Republican, portfolio manager

How ICE was treating people. This is not the way to do it.

Jose, 62, Fla., Latino, independent, employment specialist

I thought he’d learned his lesson, and was going to prove to everybody he learned from his mistakes, and he was going to turn the country around and he was going to be a stellar president. But it’s turned out to be a horror movie. I was so wrong with the vote for him.

Jose, 62, Fla., Latino, independent, employment specialist

There’s not one promise that he made that he’s followed through on. He said we’re not going to be in any wars. We have had wars. We’re discriminating against anybody that looks different than us or believes in whatever religion or sexual preference. That’s not what we’re about. I don’t watch the news anymore because I get depressed.

Pamela, 65, Tenn., white, Republican, small business owner

I was hopeful. I thought he was the lesser of two evils. I voted for him the first time, too. I was hopeful that he had learned his lesson. But the thing that frustrates me the most is how he divides people.

Natan, 19, Ore., Black, Republican, student

I thought he was the lesser of two evils. I thought the second term would be a little better from the first. And the way the Democrats approach a lot of moral and social issues didn’t agree with me. But prices are high as ever. Gas, anything consumer-related is high with tariffs and everything. If you understand economic policy, tariffs are not the way to go because the cost is passed to consumers.

Argenis, 35, Fla., Latino, independent, HVAC sales

The whole idea behind DOGE, I liked and I entertained that they’re actually going to clean up some deficient parts of the government that do all this spending and uncover fraud. It was all very exciting at first. Wow, OK, we’re actually shifting in some kind of interesting direction that I haven’t really seen before. But to piggyback off a lot of what other folks said, and really, it’s my opinion, too, but it’s the fact, a lot of the things that he said that he’s going to do has just kind of derailed. And he’s very emotional with his decisions. There’s a lot of uncertainty as a result.

Chris, 42, Ill., white, Republican, electrician

He promised a secure border, and that’s what he did right away on Day 1. That was probably his biggest accomplishment so far.

Michelle, 45, Md., Latina, Republican, construction administration

I somewhat agree on the border comment. Part of what bothers me regarding that is the fact that it seems to be just one ethnicity type that’s being targeted in regards to immigration. He’s not trying to clean up both sides of the country’s borders. If he was more consistent in treating immigrants as immigrants and not just one demographic, then I would agree wholeheartedly. But the one thing that he’s done right, and that’s why I gave him the grade that I gave him, is the fact that he’s been tough on crime, and especially addressing cartels.

Franceska, 26, Wash., mixed race, independent, deckhand

There was a lot of crime, and he did cut down on a lot of that. Not all that crime was coming from immigrants. But there were groups of people that were just allowed here freely that were taking advantage of the country. And he did close the border as much as possible to where they weren’t coming in anymore. But I do feel the way he is handling immigration now is a little bit of abuse of power.

John, 62, Md., white, Republican, packaging specialist

He did initiate the ending of the penny, silly as that is. And he initiated getting us out of the World Health Organization and the Paris climate agreement. Two positive things, I guess, if you really look at it on the whole. I mean, that was accounting for a lot of our budget money.

John, 62, Md., white, Republican, packaging specialist

He kind of does what he wants, almost, without any repercussions. I mean, the Kennedy Center, the Kennedy-Trump Center, I mean, he got a little bit of pushback, but he’s doing it. I mean, I don’t like it. But he does what he says he’s going to do, whether we like it or not.

Natan, 19, Ore., Black, Republican, student

He did secure the border and slow down immigration. He did it his way, and a lot of it is bad. He could have done it in a much, much, much better way. So there’s that. His administration has advocated more for state choice on abortion, which has given a lot of states the allowance to actually pursue the policies they want.

Natan, 19, Ore., Black, Republican, student

I do have several family members who legally immigrated. While he has tried to cut back on illegal immigration, it has hurt a lot of legal immigrants. He’s created problems in getting access to legal citizenship. A lot of appointments and interviews are on hold right now. People don’t feel safe leaving states or countries, because even though they are legal, they still might be found illegal in his eyes or in his administration’s eyes.

Nancy, 55, Ariz., white, independent, operations

Tariffs are really impacting me, especially at work, because I work for a company that has offices abroad. The tariffs are just creating chaos at work between all of our customers, not understanding all the changes that are happening, and the rollbacks, and are they going to get a refund. It’s just constant chaos.

Jose, 62, Fla., Latino, independent, employment specialist

I travel a lot in the course of my job. I’m cutting my travel time because of the prices of gas. The cost of living is terrible. That’s why I emphasize with my daughter that every dollar that you keep, save it. I mean, do the best that you can do because we don’t know what’s going to happen six months from now.

Franceska, 26, Wash., mixed race, independent, deckhand

Mexicans, Spanish people. My boyfriend looks Mexican. Dark hair, black mustache, beard. He was pulled over by ICE, immigration, and they checked his ID and all that, I feel just because of how he looked. I see them pulling people over, and it seems like it’s one race, which is unfortunate.

Chris, 42, Ill., white, Republican, electrician

I think Trump is focused on the stock market, Wall Street. He’s focused on the rich.

Daniel, 41, Calif., Latino, independent, manufacturing

Yeah, he’s more focused on the stock market. Also, I think he’s protecting his rich buddies. I mean, it’s fine because they own corporations, but at the same time, I think he’s more focused on profit than what happens. It’s pretty hard to tell a person, a rich person, what to do. They’re going to do whatever they want. They’ve always done it their whole lives because they can just pay their way out of any situation.

Argenis, 35, Fla., Latino, independent, HVAC sales

He was so focused on Americans and making the country great, but now it doesn’t seem that way at all. He’s more focused on Israeli affairs and what’s going on there, and immigrants. I understand that was a big part of the deal, but it’s like he’s targeting one demographic.

Nancy, 55, Ariz., white, independent, operations

Regret.

Michelle, 45, Md., Latina, Republican, construction administration

I feel foolish. In a family full of Democrats, I really stood my ground twice to defend my stance. I feel like time and time again, all of the things that they pointed out would happen have ended up happening. And I looked dumb as hell believing in fairy tales and wishy-washy promises. I feel like if Trump would have approached the country and the problems that the nation has been having as passionately as he had his personal vendettas against Biden and those before and after him, he would have been an amazing president. I really did believe at one point that he was also a frustrated American who was so fed up he was going to make a world of difference.

Michelle, 45, Md., Latina, Republican, construction administration

Watching him allow Vance to run his mouth and yap away during this interview with Zelensky. And he didn’t stop it. That was like the first moment where I was like, what the heck?

Pamela, 65, Tenn., white, Republican, small business owner

I had the exact same moment as Michelle. I was horrified sitting there watching that interaction. I felt so bad for Zelensky. What was going through my head is that I was imagining Trump, out where all the soldiers are, going in and seeing how they are. Zelensky, you always see him with the soldiers. He’s right there. He is so hands-on. It’s just horrible.

Pamela, 65, Tenn., white, Republican, small business owner

Our family is mostly Republican. I grew up a strong Republican. But I noticed that people that I knew to be conservative Republicans were starting to say, “I think we made a huge mistake here.” That’s how I feel. I’m not embarrassed by anyone that is like, oh, yeah, we told you this would happen. I’m not embarrassed by that. I’m embarrassed for our whole country that this is what we’re dealing with daily now.

Jose, 62, Fla., Latino, independent, employment specialist

I was excited because I thought Trump, being a smart man like he calls himself, had realized the errors of his past. So I thought, OK, he’s going to jump on this and he’s going to be one of the best presidents that we had in a four-year term.

Jose, 62, Fla., Latino, independent, employment specialist

He started separating kids and doing that mean stuff to parents, to moms, and all that. That wasn’t necessary. I understand immigration enforcement, but he was trying to be mean. That’s not a president that I want to follow. My 17-year-old asked me, “Why did you vote for him, Dad?” And that breaks my heart every time she does that. So I trusted him to do the right thing. The immigration, there’s a right way to do it. You don’t have to be mean to do that. So I regret that.

Chris, 42, Ill., white, Republican, electrician

I was enthusiastic that he’d turn things around, in terms of securing the border, making things more affordable. And having the House, both Congress and the Senate, he’d be able to pass things and get things done. And here we are in a war. And the deficit is continuing to expand. We’re headed in the wrong direction.

Franceska, 26, Wash., mixed race, independent, deckhand

My family are very strong Democrats. They voted for Kamala and Biden, and Democrats every year before that. And you can’t even really mention Trump in that household without a big fight starting. Even though it’s just not me that voted, it’s a lot of people, I feel like I’d be shunned, honestly, with how strong their stance was.

Argenis, 35, Fla., Latino, independent, HVAC sales

My friends and family are pretty much all conservative or moderate. And it’s like a unanimous theme right now. I don’t feel like it’s just my network of friends and family. It’s kind of broader — the country feels the same with how we’ve been kind of let down.

Argenis, 35, Fla., Latino, independent, HVAC sales

Yeah, we don’t go too much into depth, just because it’s a touchy subject at this point.

Alla, 51, Ala., white, Republican, portfolio manager

I think we’re the same. We don’t talk a lot about it, because I think it’s a lot of people who keep it a secret. I live in a state which is very Republican. Ninety percent of people probably vote the same way I did. And it’s hard for them, Republicans. For them to change their mind, or even be more open, it’s hard. So it’s a very touchy subject.

Kitty, 36, Pa., Asian, independent, student

OK. Honestly, it’s really hard because my parents are super MAGA. Even if I point out a flaw, like, hey, look, that wasn’t cool. They say, “Well, Biden did this. Well, the Democrats did this.” Well, blah, blah, blah, it’s always deflecting. You can’t even have a conversation. But then on the flip side, where I am, it’s the total opposite. It’s like, oh, you’re evil because you thought Trump was human or something. There’s almost no space to even discuss.

Kitty, 36, Pa., Asian, independent, student

Just hoping to hear, maybe they’ll be like, oh, why? First they ask me why, just trying to understand where I’m coming from, because I try to understand where other people come from. I guess I didn’t understand where Trump was coming from. That’s just my hope, is that we would have a civilized conversation, because at the end of the day, we’re all Americans. At the end of the day, we need to stick together and make our country stronger. Otherwise, we’re just going to fall apart, like other civilizations in the past.

Natan, 19, Ore., Black, Republican, student

I live in Oregon. So Oregon is very, very Democratic, and very left in a lot of their opinions and their policies. I have seen the advantages and the benefits of that. At the same time, I do have a lot of moral issues with a lot of what they do. I live in a community where most of us are moderate, leaning conservative. We talked about our vote, and a lot of regret was there. And I feel regret, too. But at the same time, I do want to emphasize for myself and for those people, the fact is, it’s more that I should have not voted at all, instead of voted for another person, because it’s like, in my terms, it is like a trolley problem. There’s two evils. It’s going to get you a similar result.

John, 62, Md., white, Republican, packaging specialist

Among my circle of friends and compatriots, it’s divisive. Whether you voted one side or the other, I think it’s contempt prior to investigation. It’s just a gut level. That’s bad. Without really hearing or understanding the interest behind the position of what’s actually happening on the macro level. He doesn’t control everything. I mean, there’s other global geopolitical things happening in the realm of things. But with my group, my family, my friends, if you say you voted one way or the other, we can typically have a general discourse. You might not agree with me. I might not agree with you. I might learn something new. But people are just so quick to react right off the bat that it’s just like, nope, I’m just throwing up the block. You’re an idiot.

Daniel, 41, Calif., Latino, independent, manufacturing

Well, I live in California. It’s mostly Democratic. My vote doesn’t really matter. But the reason I haven’t really said anything is because, one, I wasn’t really going to vote for Kamala Harris. I know her track record. What she did here in California, it’s not the greatest. Also, I don’t really bring it up. I just express disappointment. I show it emotionally, but I’m not verbal about it because here in California, everything’s so touchy here. People will react with their feelings.

Nancy, 55, Ariz., white, independent, operations

I usually don’t talk politics or religion to friends, family, co-workers. It’s just better to avoid that topic.

Jose, 62, Fla., Latino, independent, employment specialist

I have two friends who also voted for Trump that we’re not on talking terms right now because I’m critical of him. But they have the right to feel that way.

John, 62, Md., white, Republican, packaging specialist

Cost of living, oil, gas — housing. I mean, you touch on any aspect of it, it’s bad.

Argenis, 35, Fla., Latino, independent, HVAC sales

Absolutely. Any gas station you go to, you’re going to see inflated prices. You go to any grocery store, same thing. I mean, there’s nowhere you can turn. I was hoping to be able to afford a house, and it’s going up and up and up and up and up.

Nancy, 55, Ariz., white, independent, operations

I was going to say the number of homeless people I’m seeing, as well as lines at food donation places — just overall, I’m seeing everybody really, really struggling here, compared to two years ago.

Michelle, 45, Md., Latina, Republican, construction administration

Yeah, it bothers the hell out of me. Other countries have been willing to dismiss bloodlines and are doing a better job at holding people accountable, and we’re still cloaking and protecting people of power because they’re people of power.

John, 62, Md., white, Republican, packaging specialist

I mean, not defending Trump, but Pam Bondi is no longer in charge of things because she dragged her feet and stalled and did whatever. Depending on where you stand on things, conspiracy theories notwithstanding, there is substance there. I don’t think we’ll ever, ever know the full extent of things. It’s just, I don’t think there’s a huge cover-up, but we’ll never know. We’ll never know. But I mean, he at least did something.

Nancy, 55, Ariz., white, independent, operations

Everything he’s doing, from little things like tearing down part of the White House to putting up the ballroom, everything he does just feels very corrupt and self-serving.

Nancy, 55, Ariz., white, independent, operations

Oh, I don’t think any of them are all that great, but it’s far worse. I mean, on a scale of one to 10, most would be in probably the seven range. I feel like he’s just off the charts.

Pamela, 65, Tenn., white, Republican, small business owner

I feel like the Epstein thing and everything that we’re going through and living through now is like Watergate all over again. I feel like it’s just every administration — Clinton with Monica Lewinsky — I mean, there’s just always something. It’s just normal, that it’s like a boys’ club. They just cover up everything and they keep their friends out of it. It’s sad, but it’s not a surprise. Though I voted for Obama; I don’t see him doing that. I don’t see Reagan doing that.

Alla, 51, Ala., white, Republican, portfolio manager

I agreed that we needed to do something about Iran, because we can’t just let that keep going. We can’t get another North Korea with a nuclear weapon. I’m pro-Israel. That subject, I do support him. Maybe it was not thought through, but I think it needed to be addressed.

Kitty, 36, Pa., Asian, independent, student

Yeah, I totally agree with Alla. Somebody had to do something. I’m not sure what the best way is, but this doesn’t feel like it. And then it doesn’t help when you say, oh, you’re ending civilization or something like that.

Daniel, 41, Calif., Latino, independent, manufacturing

There should be peace talks, but every single time there’s peace talks, Israel has to intervene and attack the country. I think the evil in the Middle East, in that whole area, is Israel. They do a cease-fire and they attack Lebanon the same day. I’m like, come on, dude. Yeah, the whole Gaza thing, I think it’s just terrible. I think Israel’s doing what they say was done to them.

Jose, 62, Fla., Latino, independent, employment specialist

I agree with him. I’m sorry if anybody gets offended, but the evil in the Middle East is Israel. We shouldn’t be in Iran. They don’t have a nuclear weapon. Show us something with proof, and then we can go in and do a negotiation.

Chris, 42, Ill., white, Republican, electrician

Rubio. In the Republican Party, he’s probably the most intelligent and interconnected between both parties out of all the candidates.

Jose, 62, Fla., Latino, independent, employment specialist

Marjorie Taylor Greene. I don’t watch the news, but the other day I turned on the news and I saw her, and I was taken back with a statement. I didn’t know that she left the House. So that was shocking to me.

Jose, 62, Fla., Latino, independent, employment specialist

I did like it. I did like it. She’s spoken up. And for a woman, she puts herself in a terrible position with Trump. But I applaud her.

Argenis, 35, Fla., Latino, independent, HVAC sales

I like DeSantis. One thing that I do appreciate is that he is trying to do away with property taxes. I mean, I think he has a very good point. You pay your house off, you have the deed and it’s free and clear; you should not have to keep paying the government.

John, 62, Md., white, Republican, packaging specialist

Typically, if you don’t walk the line with Trump, he kind of just keeps you at arm’s length and he kind of just downplays anything you’re trying to do. So unless you’re like an ardent supporter of him in that Republican Party, you’re an outcast. So somebody to walk that line, speak to the Democrat side, speak to the Republican side, can probably go a long way. And other Republicans I like, I’ll go with Ted Cruz.

Michelle, 45, Md., Latina, Republican, construction administration

I don’t believe that my views toward Trump impact how I see other Republicans. I think that I tend to be pretty levelheaded. As much as I will declare myself to be Republican, I think that my tendencies and beliefs tend to be a little more independent. While I see myself as definitely more conservative, I do believe that in the next election, Trump has nothing to do with how I will vote. I will vote for someone who hopefully isn’t promising more B.S. But really just someone who has a plan, someone who sounds like they actually have been strategically planning some type of improvement.

Michelle, 45, Md., Latina, Republican, construction administration

I mean, it would depend on which aspects of Trump’s beliefs they’re supporting, because I don’t believe that there is any single American who fully supports everything that Trump has done. I might say that I support one or two of the same things, but not everything.

Chris, 42, Ill., white, Republican, electrician

Well, I think Rubio and Vance are the future of the party. They’re really, in some ways, a continuation of Trump, just a lot more toned down.

Alla, 51, Ala., white, Republican, portfolio manager

I agree with Chris, because if I had to vote right now, I would go for Rubio. I think he’s balanced. I know he works for Trump, and I feel like a lot of his beliefs he’s kind of hiding, because he works for him now, because he’s a politician.

Natan, 19, Ore., Black, Republican, student

Social issues. They’re doing good things, but the things I want them to do, it would make them not Democratic. Whether it be on abortion or education, if I say, oh, change, then they’re not going to be the Democratic Party anymore.

Franceska, 26, Wash., mixed race, independent, deckhand

I don’t disagree with people being trans at all, but I do not agree with teaching our children that kind of thing. There were books in libraries on penises, vaginas, stuff that little children, kindergartners, shouldn’t even know about. So I think that was a big thing that was being pushed when Biden was in office and changing genders of children. I really didn’t want my kids to think about that kind of stuff, because I feel like you should be thinking of it as an adult, not as a child.

Pamela, 65, Tenn., white, Republican, small business owner

I would say stop whining about everything. I feel like they find a cause, and then they just whine about it until there’s something else to whine about. And I agree with Franceska. You should be who you are, but not to the point where we have to flaunt it in front of children. All of the commercials that are on — it’s just too much. I think that there should be a focus on accepting each other for who we are, but we don’t have to demonstrate it. And I feel like the Democrats are like, oh, no, no, no, we have to. We’re going to have a rally on this because we want this to be brought out.

Jose, 62, Fla., Latino, independent, employment specialist

I totally disagree with that statement. I’ve been watching sex on TV since I was a little boy. I’m 62 years old. So that doesn’t sway me. What happened to me was that they shoved Kamala down our throat as the candidate. They didn’t have an open discussion with the people to pick the candidate. Get together, get the right candidate, let the people decide and let’s go forward.

John, 62, Md., white, Republican, packaging specialist

I mean, that’s kind of what I said, too. It’s like, that’s the best you got? I mean, they’re so fractured in their approach. They don’t really have that next level on their bench, so to speak, the up-and-comers to really make a move. I mean, 2028 is two years away, right? I mean, Wes Moore here in Maryland is an up-and-comer, but he’s got a lot of baggage also.

Jose, 62, Fla., Latino, independent, employment specialist

Yeah, that’s why I don’t talk about it. I heard, “Well, you were the one that voted for him. So you get what you get.” So that’s why I don’t talk about it. It’s a secret. I don’t do that no more. I just stay to myself.

Michelle, 45, Md., Latina, Republican, construction administration

I mean, I expected something different. I expected something better. I would not have voted for someone if I had ill intentions or believed that they had ill intentions. And so that’s part of what has me feeling the way that I feel.

Pamela, 65, Tenn., white, Republican, small business owner

Think carefully. When people show you who they are, believe them.

Argenis, 35, Fla., Latino, independent, HVAC sales

Don’t trust any of them.

Alla, 51, Ala., white, Republican, portfolio manager

Argenis said it exactly. I would repeat it. Don’t trust none of them.

Franceska, 26, Wash., mixed race, independent, deckhand

If someone’s making big claims, that they’re probably overcompensating for something else.

Chris, 42, Ill., white, Republican, electrician

I was hoping for a great comeback. I was hoping that he’d learned from his past successes and failures.

Franceska, 26, Wash., mixed race, independent, deckhand

I thought I was helping us get and save more money with taxes. I thought that they would get rid of taxes so we would get our full paycheck instead of just half of it.

Kitty, 36, Pa., Asian, independent, student

I was expecting what he was like his first runaround, and it’s completely different. Completely the opposite of what you’d hope for.