Announcer:

The following program is a PBS Wisconsin original production. The following program is part of our “Here & Now” 2022 election coverage.

Frederica Freyberg:

One week closer to the mid-term elections and campaigns are courting new voters. Clerks are preparing for the election in ways they never knew they’d have to. And campaign messaging hits a new low.

I’m Frederica Freyberg tonight on “Here & Now,” a report on the appeals political parties are making to Latino voters. We check in on the third congressional district. Election inspectors prepare for active shooters. And a look at the fear mongering messages and political attack ads. It’s “Here & Now” for October 21.

Announcer:

Funding for “Here & Now” is provided by the Focus Fund for Journalism and Friends of PBS Wisconsin.

Frederica Freyberg:

The razor thin margins of Wisconsin elections mean neither political party can take any voter for granted. Leading up to the midterms, Democrats and Republicans are making their appeals to Hispanic and Latino voters with more than just speaking a few lines of Spanish at a rally, but with expensive and labor-intensive door-to-door campaigns. Marisa Wojcik brings us the story.

Helder Toste:

Hola, buenas tardes.

Christine Neumann-Ortiz:

The Latinx vote is very important and it’s been very critical in Wisconsin in the last major races in 2018 and 2020.

Marisa Wojcik:

Like every election season, campaigns are getting out and talking to voters. But this year’s midterm elections have a particular focus on the Hispanic and Latino vote in Wisconsin.

Benjamin Marquez:

Outreach has been shown to make a big difference, especially door-to-door campaigns.

Christine Neumann-Ortiz:

We decided to start mobilizing the Latinx vote.

Marisa Wojcik:

Christine Neumann-Ortiz is the director and founder of Voces de la Frontera, an organization advocating for immigrants and low wage workers and an arm of their organization endorses candidates.

Christine Neumann-Ortiz:

Candidates that stand with us on the issue of immigrant racial justice, workers’ rights, and education rights.

Marisa Wojcik:

For Voces, those candidates have been Democrats. And historically Hispanic and Latino voters have favored this party.

Benjamin Marquez:

They vote for the Democrats and it’s been pretty consistent.

Marisa Wojcik:

Benjamin Marquez is a political science professor specializing in Chicano and Latino studies.

Benjamin Marquez:

The Democrats have to have a good strategy for reaching out to Latino voters. They have to make contact on the ground. They have to convince them that the election is important, that their vote matters, and that they should go to all of this trouble to get out and vote for a party that oftentimes it doesn’t deliver.

Marisa Wojcik:

When Democrats don’t deliver, support for them isn’t guaranteed.

Christine Neumann-Ortiz:

In 2020, we actually had a drop off of Latino participation compared to 2016. People didn’t want to just reject Trump. Latinos, like other voters, want to know, what do you offer? What is the change that you offer?

Marisa Wojcik:

Enter Republicans.

Rick Scott:

Hispanic voters have been, basically, been taken granted by Democrats.

Marisa Wojcik:

Florida Senator Rick Scott chairs the National Republican Senatorial Committee and launched the Operacion Vamos campaign in nine battleground states.

Benjamin Marquez:

They have to get all Latino votes to win elections. They just have to get enough to deny the Democrats an election.

Marisa Wojcik:

Conservatives believe they have more to offer based on the top issues for Hispanic and Latino voters.

Benjamin Marquez:

Number one is jobs. Number two is jobs. And that’s number three as well.

Rick Scott:

It’s their livelihood, it’s their faith, it’s their kids, and it’s the safety of their communities what they are focused on.

Marisa Wojcik:

Republicans have a few strategies in their campaign. The first is on issues. At the doors in south Milwaukee, Helder Toste doesn’t need to prompt anyone about candidates, elections, or even the Republican Party, he simply asks, what’s most important in their lives?

[ speaking in language other than English ]

Gaudencia Ruiz:

They haven’t done anything and there are a lot of accidents here on this road. Cars drive fast like it was a freeway and, truly, it’s dangerous. They come out to play and suddenly the ball goes. And a car is going by and it’s very serious, very dangerous.

[ speaking in language other than English ]

I have a son who is hyperactive in a special class and they got rid of all of his help in the special classes in public school.

Juana Grimaldo:

Assaults, shootings, robberies, it’s increased a lot. More than anything, it’s safety because sometimes you’re seeing what is happening and you start to worry about your children.

Marisa Wojcik:

The second strategy points a finger at the party currently in power.

Helder Toste:

Do you think the president has done his job? Good job? Or bad job?

Juana Grimaldo:

A bad job because he hasn’t accomplished what he promised.

Benjamin Marquez:

They need results more than they need party loyalty.

Marisa Wojcik:

And finally, perhaps most essential, you have to show up.

Helder Toste:

You’ve lived here for 20 years, has a political party ever called you or contacted you?

Juana Grimaldo:

Nothing.

Helder Toste:

And where do you think that comes from?

Juana Grimaldo:

Well, truly because we’re Mexicans. They don’t pay attention to us.

Rick Scott:

Hispanic voters are way more inclined to vote Republican, as long as Republicans reach out to and talk to them. Hispanic voters are fed up with the public school system around the country right now. They want a better economic market. They don’t want to see inflation. They want to live in safe communities. If we talk about those issues, then we are going to win elections.

Marisa Wojcik:

One issue that may seem counter intuitive for Hispanic and Latinos to support Republicans on is immigration. Maria in Racine says immigration is the most important issue for her and why she’s a Democrat.

Maria Castaneda:

It is something that hurts because we came the same way. We got lucky but we are the same.

Marisa Wojcik:

Marquez says this tie to the immigrant identity has been shown to fade over time.

Benjamin Marquez:

With each succeeding generation of Latinos living in the United States, the further away they get from that, and so the Latinos that voted, you know, voted for Donald Trump and his anti-immigration policy, saw what border enforcement was, and heard about, you know, how immigrants are being treated, but they look at that and say, well, that is not me.

Marisa Wojcik:

Even Maria says one of her children is Republican.

Maria Castaneda:

Most of them are Democrats. I know my oldest is not.

Marisa Wojcik:

That’s not to say the Democrats don’t still hold the advantage.

Benjamin Marquez:

Two out of three Latino voters see the value in a large social welfare state, civil rights protection, and they are willing to pay for these things.

Marisa Wojcik:

The Hispanic and Latino population has been one of the fastest growing in the United States, making this shifting voting block all the more crucial.

Christine Neumann-Ortiz:

For the last 30 years in Wisconsin, Latinos have been the largest segment of growth.

Benjamin Marquez:

About half, if not more now, of all Wisconsin dairy workers are Latinos so they are filling the void that resulted from rural depopulation.

Marisa Wojcik:

In a state like Wisconsin where elections are famously close, campaigns are trying to reach every community, every voter, or every person who knows a voter.

Christine Neumann-Ortiz:

There is a generation of children of undocumented parents who are turning 18 every year that is significant. 11,000 in 2020 turned 18, eligible to vote for the first time whose parents are undocumented. In a state where the margin is 18,000 to 23,000, that’s, you know, that’s decisive. But if they feel that the Democrats are not doing enough, then they feel like dropping out.

Marisa Wojcik:

In essence, turnout matters.

Rick Scott:

But we have to show up. Republican candidates have to show up and we have to talk to voters, all voters.

Benjamin Marquez:

If they make an inroad into the Latino population, they’ve got a winning formula.

Marisa Wojcik:

Reporting for “Here & Now,” I’m Marisa Wojcik.

Frederica Freyberg:

In the swing third congressional district in western Wisconsin, there have been no candidate debates and the Trump-endorsed candidate mostly doesn’t do interviews with the so-called “mainstream media.” In that race, Republican Derrick Van Orden has a big fundraising edge and a few polls that have been taken show him in the lead over Democrat Brad Pfaff. Is that race a done deal? We turn to Anthony Chergosky, a professor of political science at UW-La Crosse. Thanks for being here.

Anthony Chergosky:

Thank you.

Frederica Freyberg:

So is it a done deal in favor of Derrick Van Orden or could there be a surprise in this swingy district?

Anthony Chergosky:

There could always be surprises out here in western Wisconsin Frederica but I do think it is mostly a done deal. You look at the investment that the Democratic Party is making, and there is not much investment to speak of when you look at the third congressional district. The money talks. You look at how the parties are allocating their resources. And that tells you a lot about how the parties view this particular race here in western Wisconsin.

Frederica Freyberg:

So what do Brad Pfaff supporters think of that?

Anthony Chergosky:

I think they are very upset. I have talked with many of them. They think the party has abandoned Brad Pfaff. They think Brad Pfaff is being left to fend for himself. Certainly Democrats here have a very negative view of Derrick Van Orden, the Republican. But without the resources to make that case, they are going to have some problems. As you noted, Frederica, there are no debates, there are very few candidate interviews. This is a race that is relying on those 30-second television advertisements. So the candidates need the money to fund those advertisements. That is how they are presenting themselves to the voters.

Frederica Freyberg:

What is your reaction to the idea that there has been no debates, the town halls that they wanted to put on didn’t happen. What is your reaction to that kind of a campaign?

Anthony Chergosky:

Well, first of all, I would note it is an end of a very long tradition that we’ve had here in western Wisconsin. I’ve talked to people who have been around politics in La Crosse in a very long time. This is the first time they can ever remember there being no debate in this particular congressional seat. It’s a major disappointment. It also is a situation where the candidates are just relying on that paid media. And that makes me extremely worried, Frederica. It makes me extremely worried about the level of information the voters are going to have as they cast their vote. Voters relying on paid media, paid advertisements, as a political scientist, that makes me nervous. I would much rather there be debates, unscripted situations where you can really get to know the candidates in-depth. The voters just are not going to have that type of experience, that type of opportunity in this campaign.

Frederica Freyberg:

On the ground there, what issues does this race turn on that could bring people out to the polls?

Anthony Chergosky:

One of the striking aspects of this campaign has been the lack of discussion of the issues. For Brad Pfaff, the discussion has been about Derrick Van Orden’s presence in Washington, D.C. on January 6th. And also Brad Pfaff’s support for Roe versus Wade, going back to the situation under Roe versus Wade. Derrick Van Orden cast Brad Pfaff as a career politician. Someone who has always been in government and he contrasts himself with Brad Pfaff, Derrick Van Orden does, by talking about how he is a political outsider. So we haven’t had much discussion of the issues at all. It’s mostly about trying to create a persona through those highly polished, highly produced television commercials.

Frederica Freyberg:

Does it seem as though the January 6th tie with Derrick Van Orden is really resonating at all with voters because one recent headline said voters shrug off GOP candidates January 6th tie.

Anthony Chergosky:

I think Democrats here are frustrated they don’t have the resources to make that case against Derrick Van Orden. There has been some effort by Democrats here to emphasize how Derrick Van Orden was in Washington, D.C. on January 6th. Democrats have tried to raise questions and raise concerns about what exactly Derrick Van Orden was doing in D.C. on that day. But in a campaign that relies so much on paid advertisements, in a campaign where you don’t have unscripted moments, interviews, town halls, debates, you’ve got to rely on that paid advertisement and right now the Democrats do not have the resources to run a sustained campaign focusing on January 6th as they go against Derrick Van Orden.

Frederica Freyberg:

So you’ve made an interesting point that the third was kind of the last hope for Democrats outside their strongholds in Madison and Milwaukee. What kind of an example is this of a state divided between urban and rural?

Anthony Chergosky:

This is going to be a fantastic example of the urban/rural divide if this district does go Republican in November because then what will we have? If this district goes red, we will have a 6-2 split in the House delegation for Wisconsin. We’ll have six Republicans, two Democrats. We’ll have both Democrats representing the major urban areas, Gwen Moore in Milwaukee, Mark Pocan in Madison. A perfect example of how the state is so divided between urban and rural. Frederica, I think that is where we may be heading this November.

Frederica Freyberg:

Anthony Chergosky, thanks very much.

Anthony Chergosky:

Thank you.

Frederica Freyberg:

For more of our coverage on the race in the third congressional district, visit our website at PBSwisconsin.org and click on the news tab.

With guidance from election and law enforcement officials, poll workers across the state have been training for potential disruptions, even violence, on Election Day. In one small city in south central Wisconsin, the election clerk there hosted trainings about what to do in the event of gun violence while trying to balance between creating awareness and scaring the daylights out of poll workers.

Police Officer:

Let them know it’s an active threat, active shooter.

Frederica Freyberg:

This is active shooter training for a room full of election inspectors in the small city of Stoughton in Dane County.

Police Officer:

Stay away from the doorways, stay away from windows.

Frederica Freyberg:

City clerk Candee Christen and her deputy look on after arranging the training in preparation for Election Day. You seem almost emotional about this. Why?

Candee Christen:

They are my responsibility. This is just a tough time right now, too, because all the clerks are under so much stress right now and working up to November 8th.

Frederica Freyberg:

Stress born of rapidly changing voting procedures and today’s political vitriol.

Donald Trump:

We need a landslide so big the radical left cannot rig it or steal it.

Frederica Freyberg:

Where a room full of poll workers could be sitting ducks.

Candee Christen:

Is it targeted? Could it be? We hate to think that way, but I feel that the environment is dictating that. We really need to be aware and be prepared.

Man:

And this blood is going to soak into this gauze and it will start to clot up.

Frederica Freyberg:

Awareness and preparation that also includes teaching these election inspectors how to pack gunshot wounds to stop bleeding.

Nate Olson:

When you go to the polling locations, just take a glance around and see, is there a nearby room where I can barricade myself into that room?

Frederica Freyberg:

Trainees learn to have their head in the game at all times from consideration of barricading against assailants, to hiding.

Nate Olson:

Again, when you are hiding, don’t hide all together. You want to be spread out amongst the room as far away from each other as you can because if you all go into one spot, it makes it one really big easy target.

Frederica Freyberg:

Officers also describe how the election inspectors can subdue shooters if they are up to it.

Nate Olson:

This is the point where you believe this person is potentially going to kill you or kill someone else. Do you have what it takes?

Frederica Freyberg:

For veteran poll workers whose mastery lies in voting rules and regulations, learning active shooter response seems a sad reality of the current political climate.

Linda Lane:

I think it says a lot about our current political situation. I wish it wasn’t this way. It is. It’s good to have the training and hopefully we won’t need it.

Frederica Freyberg:

Inspectors we spoke with are keenly concerned about unsettled rules around election observers and shifting rules on absentee ballot curing. Meanwhile, U.S. attorneys in Wisconsin announced this week that their offices will handle complaints on Election Day including threats of violence, fraud, and voting rights concerns. The FBI will also have special agents on hand.

Also tonight, what issues are young people saying are important to them ahead of the midterm elections? We spanned out across the state to interview students including those from two PBS NewsHour Student Reporting Labs high schools. Here’s a sampling of what they told us.

Julia Cleveland:

The main issues that matter to me are abortion rights, LGBTQ rights, and probably gun control.

Griffin Moorhead:

I mean, I think there are a lot of big issues right now. I would say probably the three that matter to me the most are the economy, foreign policy, and privacy.

Sheia Wiggins:

The most important issue is definitely global warming because it doesn’t matter what — if we can vote or who we are if the planet is dead.

McKenna Dehn:

The big issue that is very important to me is women’s rights and especially over our bodies, especially at a time like this when our bodies are being controlled by the government.

Bella Ruston:

The issues that are important to me probably have a lot to do with the communities that I’m a part of. Issues that surround immigrants and people of color and LGTBQ issues.

Ashley Butkus:

Some issues that are important to me are climate change, our changing environment and the world around us. I believe abortion should be a right and be protected for every woman regardless of the situation.

Ben Fraley:

I think a woman’s right to choose is very important. Gun control. Taxes. Medical marijuana. Legalization or decriminalization of drugs. But I think the number one issue for me is voting rights, just in general across the country.

Frederica Freyberg:

Thanks to the PBS Wisconsin Education department for helping gather those youth voices.

Now turning to the U.S. Senate race.

Male TV announcer:

Mandela Barnes dangerously liberal on crime.

Female TV announcer:

Mandela Barnes, he stands with them, not us.

Female TV announcer:

Mandela Barnes not just a Democrat, a dangerous Democrat.

Frederica Freyberg:

So different and dangerous. We just saw the words and images in campaign ads for Republican Senator Ron Johnson that are used to describe his Democratic challenger Lieutenant Governor Mandela Barnes. Many observers say this kind of messaging goes way beyond being racially tinged. Johnson’s campaign says it’s nothing of the sort. That Ron Johnson is talking to voters about the issues important to them including out of control crime. Here to unpack the division and how Wisconsin voters may respond to this is John Eason, associate professor of sociology at UW-Madison. Thank you very much for being here.

John Eason:

Thank you for having me.

Frederica Freyberg:

How would you describe the kind of messaging that we are seeing now in the Wisconsin U.S. Senate race?

John Eason:

I think it’s reminiscent of ads we have seen in the past from Willie Horton all the way back to the Goldwater campaign with the long black shadow hand really reaching out and speaking about crime and equating blackness with crime.

Frederica Freyberg:

Do you think it goes beyond those kinds of older messages?

John Eason:

I think it’s ironically right on brand but I think given how hyper polarized we are today, there is no real town square in America that there is no way to have real checks and balances, that this is just right on brand. I don’t think it’s any worse.

Frederica Freyberg:

I mean the messages are connected to, on the one hand crime rates, and on the other hand, things like mass incarceration and policing reform. But you have said, when you have general misinformation and you throw racism into the mix, that’s a pretty powerful elixir. How so?

John Eason:

Racism — this country has a long history of this. There are people who try to deny or minimize how much race or racism, specifically, matters. But because we’ve had so much, you know, from people leaving social media platforms, whole contingency swaths of people being siloed within social media platforms, and our news is very segmented. When you add racism into that, you add — you even further diminish the benefit of doubt and you further dehumanize people.

Frederica Freyberg:

Do you feel like this casting of Black men as dangerous is normalized in a majority white Wisconsin?

John Eason:

I think it has been normalized and not just a majority white Wisconsin, but this is normalized across the country.

Frederica Freyberg:

So Johnson’s ads have coincided with his rise in the polls, overtaking Barnes. One pundit told us, well, it works, this kind of attack ad. What does that say, though, about today’s, kind of, scorched earth politics?

John Eason:

It’s not so much it’s just about crime, it’s the fear of crime. And the fear of crime which is inextricably linked to Black people. We’ve seen this forever, but it says a lot about our politics in terms of how we are going to continue forward. Right? So I’m hopeful still because we have so many new voters who may not be captured in these polls. We have so many young voters who are going to primarily vote Democratic, that there may be some hope for changing the tone and tenure of our politics.

Frederica Freyberg:

You feel as though these kind of messages are kind of directed at the older electorate?

John Eason:

They definitely are. I think this is speaking to people whose minds are already made up. I don’t think they are going to sway many new or younger voters who, especially — even in rural communities. I think because of how well Wisconsin’s education system is compared to the rest of the country, I’m just way more hopeful because otherwise we don’t have much room. Right? To move forward. We don’t have a base to really push forward and push past where we’ve been. Not just in Wisconsin, but across the country.

Frederica Freyberg:

But still how divisive is this in a state already keenly divided by race and political lines?

John Eason:

I think it’s incredibly divisive. I think — but the people who it is fueling, the ads that — the markets they are targeting, I think everyone’s mind is kind of made up already. I don’t think this is going to sway people one way or the other. I don’t think someone is going to see this and say this is new information or I have a brand new view on Mandela Barnes.

Frederica Freyberg:

People might have their minds made up already, but how hurtful is it?

John Eason:

This is the only — this is part of why I’m hopeful. Younger voters, in particular, I’ve seen not only in my classrooms but in mentoring graduate students as well, younger people who are more hopeful, you will see this in the coming days at Thanksgiving dinners when they are pushing back against their, you know, the excuse we used to let the old drunk uncle go off and rant about whatever he wanted. You see more friction in families now at holidays because younger people aren’t putting up with this anymore.

Frederica Freyberg:

All right John Eason, thanks very much.

John Eason:

Thank you for having me.

Frederica Freyberg:

For more on this and other issues facing Wisconsin, visit our website at PBSwisconsin.org and click on the news tab. Next week just ahead of “Here & Now,” watch for special election coverage starting at 7:00. That’s our program for tonight. I’m Frederica Freyberg. Have a good weekend.

Announcer:

Funding for “Here & Now” is provided by the Focus Fund for Journalism and Friends of PBS Wisconsin.