President Donald Trump is facing fresh warning signs from voters who once gave him the benefit of the doubt. A Friday report from Axios highlights growing frustration among some 2024 supporters in North Carolina, a state Trump has long counted on, who now say his leadership is not living up to expectations.
That regret is not limited to survey respondents. North Carolina beekeeper Jim Hartman voted for Donald Trump three times, believing a second Trump presidency would be good for farmers. Now, with tariffs and cuts to federal programs that provided tens of thousands of dollars in revenue to him, Hartman tells CNN’s Randi Kaye what he thinks about his choice.
North Carolina is one of Trump’s most reliable states on paper. He won it in all three of his presidential races, and it has backed a Democratic nominee just twice in the past 50 years. At the same time, the state has elected Democratic governors during the last three presidential cycles, giving it a reputation as a true swing state where voter moods can shift quickly.
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Axios examined surveys of 14 North Carolina voters who supported Joe Biden in 2020 but switched to Trump in 2024. The results suggest a sharp turn. Eleven of the respondents now disapprove of Trump’s performance as president, and 12 say the economy is worse than when he took office. The group included 11 independents, two Democrats, and one Republican.
Many of those voters pushed back on Trump’s claims that the economy is booming and that concerns about rising costs are overblown or politically motivated.
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“I just think he’s full of it, and he’s always blaming Biden for everything instead of taking responsibility for what he’s done,” said Karen L., a 61-year-old independent from Wilmington.
“Gas is more expensive, groceries are more expensive,” added Stephen J., a 54-year-old independent from Cornelius. “But then you have to factor in, you know, this is someone who is chauffeured. This is someone who’s shopped for. So I think that there’s a disconnect between the average, everyday American people and the president.”