Will Rural America give up on Trump? These small-town activists think so.

USA Today

4 days ago

Rural organizers say Medicaid and SNAP cuts could help Democrats win rural votes in 2026. Republicans say: Don't count on it.
Dom Holmes, 28, has learned something important in 10 years of organizing progressives in rural Pennsylvania: You can't just show up when you need people to turn out to vote. You have to sit and listen to them.
In recent weeks, when he's stopped to listen, he's gotten an earful about the tax and spending bill the Republican-led Congress passed in July.
'Folks are especially worried about how that's going to impact them at the local level,' he said. They're particularly "outraged," he said, about cuts to food stamps and Medicaid and the likely damage to rural hospitals. 'Folks should be aware of what the impact ‒ immediate and not ‒ will be on them and they should know who brought that impact to their community; who brought it home to them."
His message is being echoed by rural organizers across the country who told USA TODAY that now is the time to talk with rural voters about the cuts in the GOP's landmark law ‒ and who voted for them.
Rural Democrats see implementation of the GOP tax and spending law, combined with other changes from the Trump administration that they say will directly harm rural communities, as a moment Democrats can use to rebuild their brand in what has been MAGA country for a decade.
And while national Democrats have their own plans for wading into these communities, the locals say they know these places and their neighbors best. They aren't sitting around, hoping a national group will swoop in.
'I'm a rural Democrat. We don't really tend to wait around. There's already just a ton of stuff happening,' said Matt Hildreth, Executive Director of RuralOrganizing.org. 'The energy is already happening on the ground.'
More: When would Trump's tax and spending bill go into effect?
'The frustration with Republicans is palpable'
Republicans control the House by a voting margin of 219 to 212 with four seats currently vacant. Democrats need to win four seats next year to take over the Senate. Gaining control of either chamber would allow Democrats to freeze many of President Donald Trump's policy proposals with two years left in his term.
Both parties expect the new spending law, and how voters think about it, to become one of the top issues in the midterm campaigns.
There is a frustration growing in rural America and a willingness to be identified as a Democrat that they haven't seen in years, several progressive and Democratic organizing groups told USA TODAY. Building relationships and setting the narrative now is key, they said.
'The frustration with Republicans is palpable,' Hildreth said. 'Maybe we never get the MAGA voters ‒ we probably never will ‒ but there's a ton of independents out there looking at this and just saying, 'man, this isn't what I voted for.''
Hildreth's group is already operating in congressional battleground districts in Iowa, Ohio and Pennsylvania, with a focus on getting people to talk about Medicaid.
'Our whole strategy is built around locals, just the idea that the local messenger is most effective,' he said. 'We need to rebuild the Democratic footprint from the ground up, starting with those vocal locals and localizing the Democratic brand.'
The frustration he's hearing from rural communities is about how many of the changes brought by the Trump administration are hitting at once.
Rural economies are more likely to rely on a single industry that have a strong connection to federal funding like farming, colleges or health care; all of which have seen changes in the last eight months. They've seen a freeze on farm subsidies as well as an end to public land revenue and clean energy subsidies.
'When you put tariffs on top of Medicaid cuts and you put SNAP on top … and you put the rural services that are being defunded on top of everything else, it's just not sustainable.' Hildreth said. 'It's everything all at once and I honestly don't think anybody in the White House realizes that.'
National Democrats and Republicans are busy during Congress' summer break
The Democratic National Committee has invested in rural voter engagement for months, including billboard ads near rural hospitals that are likely to close because of the law, and contributed $22,500 a month to Democratic parties in red states and town halls in Republican held districts.
"Donald Trump has been disastrous for our rural communities and the DNC will continue to show rural voters exactly how Trump and Republicans have betrayed them at every turn," DNC Deputy Executive Director Libby Schneider said in a statement.
Republicans are spending the break talking up the tax and spending law, trying to combat Democrat's attempts to set the narrative that the bill is a tax cut for the rich that hurts the poor and middle class.
'Democrats have cemented their image as snobby, out of touch, and indifferent to the struggles of everyday Americans. They've abandoned rural America by voting against tax cuts, border security, and small businesses. While Democrats recycle fear and slogans, Republicans are delivering real results for working families," said NRCC Spokesman Mike Marinella in a statement.
A NRCC memo to House Republicans obtained by Politico tells members that 'the best defense is a good offense,' and says that "this is a critical opportunity to continue to define how this legislation will help every voter and push back on Democrat fearmongering.'
It highlights that Republican voters support work requirements and removing ineligible recipients from Medicaid insurance coverage, but the five-page memo doesn't explain how the GOP members of Congress should address the bill's expected hit to rural hospitals.
Building on the momentum of protests
Stephanie Porta, campaign manager of Battleground Alliance PAC, said progressive advocates in rural areas need to capitalize on the protests that millions of Americans have attended this spring and summer ‒ not just in big cities, but in rural towns.
Her organization, a coalition of over 30 national labor, community, and advocacy organizations, has pledged $50 million to try to flip more than 35 vulnerable Republican-held districts in 2026.
They want to build on the protests and lean on local organizers to tailor education campaigns to their districts, some of which don't even have a Democratic candidate yet.
"They're putting together plans based on what their district looks like and what their member of Congress has done to make sure that the public is educated and aware and that those members of Congress know that the public is unhappy with what they have done,' she said.
They've already planned for backpack giveaways as school begins, mock welcome home parties at airports for the members of Congress and canvassing to inform voters about the impacts of the bill.
'There are protests, and then the next step after protest is building the awesome momentum to reach even more people,' Porta said.
Proposed cuts are 'motivating folks to speak up'
Lily Franklin often drives 10 minutes between houses when she knocks on doors in the Appalachian district where she is running to become a delegate to the Virginia House. She says people are worried about the future of rural health care access and Medicaid.
'There are a lot of hospitals that are at threat in this district, in this region. Folks are already driving an hour to an hour-and-a-half just to seek care,' she said. 'All of these proposed cuts are going to disproportionately hit southwest Virginia and it is motivating folks to speak up and say, hey this isn't what we wanted.'
When she knocks on doors, she spends most of the time listening, she said. She grew up in the area and her family has been there for generations.
'They just haven't had anybody show up for them and meet them where they are at, and so half of the battle is talking to voters at their doors, hearing their stories and listening to them,' she said. 'People just want to be heard.'
Even though she is running for the state general assembly, people want to talk about how worried they are about the future of rural health care access and Medicaid, she said.
They are also worried about other aspects of the new law, like cuts to food benefits and energy assistance, which states will have to help pay for, she said.
Franklin outperformed both President Joe Biden in 2020 and Vice President Harris in 2024. She lost her bid to represent the largely rural district that includes Blacksburg and Virginia Tech by just 183 votes.
Franklin said several national groups have contacted her 2025 campaign because of how closely she came to flipping such a competitive seat in a rural area. She said Democrats can't swoop in with their messaging and expect it to resonate in every district.
'We've often tried to come up with a message that's hyper-tested in a lab somewhere, but realistically people just want to be heard. That's the secret sauce,' she said.