Take Daily Mail's quiz and find out
'The Republican Party has basically sold their soul to the devil,' declared truck driver Greg Florence.
asserted
Florence → take → devil
Formerly a Republican, Florence, 65, chose to cast his vote for Democratic Senate candidate Adam Hamilton in Sedgwick County, Kansas.
asserted
Florence → choose → County
Diesel is 'freaking ridiculously high,' and there's one person to blame, he fumed.
asserted
he → freak → ?
Nearly 700 miles south in Jefferson County, Texas, that explanation for soaring fuel prices did not fly with Karan Berman, 63, an administrator.
asserted
explanation → soar → Berman
'Our gas fluctuates, Trump's going to take care of that,' she said emphatically.
asserted
she → fluctuate → that
'I'm 100 percent convinced we're going to come out the other side smelling like a rose.
asserted
we → go → rose
'
And, for good measure, the Democratic Senate candidate in her state, James Talarico, was a 'little weirdo,' she said.
asserted
she → say → state
Florence and Berman are just two of the more than 100 million people likely to cast ballots in this year's midterm elections.
asserted
Florence → cast → elections
With nearly all reputable experts forecasting that the House will be captured by the Democrats, the focus is on control of the Senate, which will be decided by a handful states.
asserted
which → forecast → states
And within each state sit crucial bellwether counties.
asserted
counties → sit → state
The Daily Mail visited five of them; Sedgwick County, Kansas; Jefferson County, Texas; Macomb County, Michigan; Montgomery County, Ohio and Waldo County, Maine.
asserted
Mail → visit → them
For good measure, the Democratic Senate candidate in her state, James Talarico, was a 'little weirdo,' said Karan Berman, 63, an administrator
In conversations with dozens of voters, several things became abundantly clear.
asserted
things → say → voters
Voters in these counties are largely treating these races as a referendum on his leadership.
asserted
Voters → treat → leadership
Second, Republican candidates in the toss-up Senate races are walking a political tightrope.
asserted
candidates → toss → tightrope
They must avoid alienating independent voters by showing too much fealty to Trump, particularly over the Iran war, while also drafting him to maximize MAGA turnout.
asserted
They → avoid → turnout
And lastly, both sides are fighting an enthusiasm war.
asserted
sides → fight → war
Democratic voters are riding high on polls showing them competitive in unexpected places but Republicans believe the numbers are wrong and that there is a hidden vote that will speak out loudly on November 3, as it has for Trump in the past.
asserted
it → rid → past
The Lone Star State
Jefferson County, Texas is perhaps the best place to see which way the wind is blowing in the state.
asserted
wind → see → state
It is the only 'pivot county' in Texas - one of the 206 US counties, out of more than 3,000, that voted for Obama in 2008 and 2012 and then Trump in 2016.
asserted
that → vote → 2016
In 2018, it backed Democrat Beto O'Rourke in his unsuccessful Senate run against Ted Cruz.
asserted
it → back → Cruz
But then, it went for Trump in 2020 and 2024.
asserted
it → go → 2020
Outside the Jefferson County courthouse Patsy Foret, 73, a retired schoolteacher, handed out materials for local Democratic judicial candidate John Stevens, who is her neighbor.
asserted
who → hand → Stevens
But she is a Republican who supports Trump and voted for Senate candidate and Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton.
asserted
who → support → Paxton
Unlike her neighbor John Stevens, Talarico had not persuaded her to switch her vote, mainly due to his previous statements on transgender issues.
asserted
Talarico → persuade → issues
'I don't understand why he said there's six genders.
asserted
he → understand → ?
You can't walk that back,' she said.
asserted
she → walk → that
Foret was also under the impression - a myth perpetuated by Trump at a Texas rally - that Talarico doesn't, or hadn't in the past, eaten meat.
asserted
Talarico → perpetuate → meat
'He was vegetarian, he said, or whatever they call it, now he eats meat,' she said.
asserted
she → say → meat
Talarico has never been a vegetarian, nor a vegan, his campaign has stated.
asserted
campaign → state → ?
As the polls opened for early voting in Jefferson County, the Rogers Park Community Center buzzed with lines out of the building.
asserted
Center → open → building
The Daily Mail found about an even number of Republicans and Democrats heading in, with not one Republican saying they planned to cross party lines for Talarico.
asserted
they → find → Talarico
One independent said they would vote for him.
asserted
they → say → him
Democrats, however, claimed Republicans were shifting – in secret.
asserted
Republicans → claim → secret
'In this county, it is very unlikely that a Republican will publicly admit they are supporting Talarico,' said Shawn Webb, a real estate company owner in her 40s.
asserted
Webb → admit → 40s
'It is happening, I can tell you that for sure.
asserted
I → happen → that
It's kind of a smaller tight-knit community here, they want to remain anonymous for fear of backlash, but it's happening.
asserted
it → knit → backlash
'
Some Republicans had been motivated to vote early, not by enthusiasm for Paxton, but out of 'fear' of what they believe Talarico represents.
asserted
Talarico → motivate → what
'Paxton is not my favorite Republican but James Talarico scares me to death.
asserted
Talarico → scar → death
I don't want somebody like him in office, any office,' said Jim Gentry, 84.
asserted
Gentry → want → office
Others said Talarico was a 'socialist' or 'communist,' and that he was trying to 'steal' Republican votes by appealing to Christians.
America's Heartland
In Kansas, the prospect of a Democrat winning a Senate seat (it hasn't happened since 1932) has actually energized supporters of both parties.
asserted
it → say → parties
…and 60 more, not listed.
The Aporia
