The four states pivotal to electing Donald Trump occupy special ground on America’s electoral map, right on the fault line where the political and economic priorities of the East meet the concerns and sensibilities of the nation’s old industrial core. The Globe dispatched reporters and photographers all over this varied, fascinating, and critical turf to seek the stories of people and communities and explore what may have changed for them since the last election.
Updated October 19, 2019, 6:00 p.m.
People flocked to the Dari Creme on 2nd Street in Portsmouth, Ohio. Owner Austin Born, 26, said he is the third generation in the family business, his grandfather opened the ice-cream stand in 1955. Craig F. Walker/Globe Staff
Chidlren in the Kingdom Soccer program battled for the ball in Portsmouth. The Cornerstone Church offers the program to children in pre-K through second grade. Craig F. Walker/Globe Staff
The abandoned Republic Rubber Co. building in Youngstown.Craig F. Walker/Globe Staff
Carol Kuchta worked on the pumpkin patch at her family's farm in Newton Falls. Her husband, Dennis, said they are struggling to sell the soybeans and corn they grow. "We have things that we planted that aren't worth anything.”Craig F. Walker/Globe Staff
Damauri Johnson, 9, used his homemade fishing rod on the Ohio River as the sun sets in Portsmouth. His father, Chris Johnson, said the family was fishing for, "whatever bites." Craig F. Walker/Globe Staff
A man passed by the Youngstown Thermal plant.Craig F. Walker/Globe Staff
Dorset lambs and ewes stood in their pen at Dorsets N Daylilies farm in Zanesville. Owner Kirsten Hatfield said the family farm raises sheep and angus cows, and grows feed and seed. She says they have been successful because, "we're diversified. You have to be diversified, hopefully they won't all fail at the same time."Craig F. Walker/Globe Staff
Paul Krause woke up after sleeping on the bandstand outside the Trumbull County Courthouse in Warren. Krause said he has been unemployed since 2010 and homeless for few months.Craig F. Walker/Globe Staff
Morning fog began to lift over the U.S. Grant Bridge in Portsmouth.Craig F. Walker/Globe Staff
Corn at a farm in Zanesville.Craig F. Walker/Globe Staff
Walkers passed the Floodwall Murals in Portsmouth. The murals, by Robert Dafford, depict the history of the city. Craig F. Walker/Globe Staff
Artist Mike Brumfield worked on a wood carving of a "cigar store Indian" outside his art gallery in Waverly. Brumfield said there is still a market for the sculptures "You can sell all the wooden Indians you can make." Craig F. Walker/Globe Staff
People visit the Ohio River at sunset in Portsmouth. Craig F. Walker/Globe Staff
