Though they live within just a few miles of each other, Paul Ringold, Julie Stout, Riley DeCavitch and Marwan Alie may have never otherwise met.
The Warren-area quartet represents a wide range of views in modern American politics, from communism to conservatism.
In October, Ideastream Public Media brought the group together over heaps of pizza at the Sunrise Inn in Warren, Ohio, to civilly discuss what's at stake in the upcoming general election.
At a time when 85% of Americans say political debate in the U.S. has become less respectful, the group's members selected for their diverse backgrounds and experiences found they had a surprising amount in common — even on politics.
Everyone is worried about the economy
The bulk of the group’s conversation focused on the economy — which is no surprise, as a new poll shows the most pressing issue facing Northeast Ohioans is the cost of living.
“It’s affecting people’s health, it’s affecting people’s quality of life, it’s affecting people’s relationships,” said Julie Stout, who added she's been pushed out of the regular economy and is poor. The 49-year-old is currently unemployed and most recently worked at Taco Bell.
According to the NEO Voter Voices poll commissioned by Ideastream Public Media, WKYC and Signal Ohio, 64% of voters say they’re worried about the economy. More than half of respondents polled said the economy — more than every other possible topic combined — would be the most likely issue to shape their presidential vote.
Stout lives with her father, a Trump supporter, and said most of her income goes toward maintaining her car and transportation costs. She relies on churches to get groceries.
Many Northeast Ohioans told pollsters that grocery affordability is a top concern, a response that was shared across political party, gender, age, education level and other demographic categories.
Paul Ringold, a pastor at Shalom Church of God in Christ, said he sees this reflected in his parish, where many members are retired or on a fixed salary even if they are working as cost of living has risen.
“The books talk, and the collection plate speaks as well,” Ringold said. “We’ve seen offerings decrease, and... I totally get it.”
Ringold said he doesn’t take a salary from his church and relies on his income as an independent truck driver. But he said with fuel costs and insurance on the rise, he’s struggling.
The 46-year-old registered Republican voted for former President Donald Trump in 2016 and President Joe Biden in 2020 because he was concerned about Trump’s inflammatory rhetoric, but he said he immediately had buyer’s remorse.
“When Trump was in office, I did better. I don’t like the guy at all. … I might ignore rhetoric and vote for Trump,” Ringold said.
Marwan Alie can empathize with Ringold’s sentiment. The 41-year-old Republican said he supports Trump but does not agree with everything the former president says or does.
As a realtor, Alie said his income depends on a stable economy. Though mortgage and inflation rates are now trending down, both rose under Biden. Alie said that raises concerns for him about a potential Vice President Kamala Harris presidency.
“If interest rates are high, people won't buy, which means realtors can't sell,” Alie said. “And then... you're not bringing home a paycheck.”
Riley DeCavitch, a 27-year-old transgender woman who identifies as a left-leaning Independent, said aside from LGBTQ+ rights, the economy and rising prices are also top of mind for her heading into the November election. She and her fiance have been trying to buy a house, but DeCavitch said saving for a downpayment has proved challenging.
She switched jobs earlier this year to work a night shift at a company that makes bath and kitchen cabinets to get a higher hourly rate and insurance.
Northeast Ohioans surveyed in the NEO Voter Voices poll ranked affordable housing as the fourth most pressing issue in the upcoming election, behind affordable groceries, immigration and public safety.
“As the price of things go up, so should the wages,” Alie said. “That's the bottom line.”
Though they all shared the same chief concern, the voters differed in how they believed the economy could be fixed.
Alie and Ringold said they will likely support Trump because they said they believe their financial situations were better when he was in office. DeCavitch said she will support Harris, whom she believes has strong economic policies on tariffs and price gouging that will positively affect American manufacturing jobs like hers and consumer costs.
Stout said she would vote for neither candidate.
She said her red line is the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza, which she said has been handled poorly under the Biden-Harris administration.
When asked what would make her feel more positive about her economic situation, Stout replied: “A revolution.”
"Honestly, I don't see it getting any better," she said.
Immigration in declining manufacturing towns like Warren and Springfield
Though only 14% of Northeast Ohioans told pollsters that immigration was their top local issue, nearly 70% called illegal immigration a “major issue.”
It’s a hot topic in towns like Warren, which has seen a decline in manufacturing and a depressed economy in recent years.
National attention has recently turned to Springfield, an Ohio city in a similar economic position to Warren’s, which has worked to attract employees after losing manufacturing jobs and population. An estimated 12,000 to 15,000 Haitian immigrants, most of whom are legally authorized to work and live in the U.S., came to fill those jobs.
Trump has vowed to conduct “large deportations in Springfield,” and made unverified and disputed accusations that the immigrants were eating residents’ pets during the September presidential debate.
The NEO Voter Voices poll’s results suggest a solid majority of respondents — more than 61% — consider immigrants in the country without the government's permission to be a “moderate” or “significant” threat to public safety. Fewer than 30% of respondents said they are a benefit to the economy.
But all four Warren residents said they wouldn’t have a problem with legal immigrants coming to their town.
“I've always been a person about securing the border, but everything should be on a case-by-case basis,” Alie said. “Anybody who comes in with due process, by all means. I mean this country is so diverse. So if it's going to increase revenue, increase the economy… yeah, I definitely agree as long as everything is legal about it.”
Ringold said he thinks immigrants coming to Warren, which currently has a declining population of about 38,000, would be a “win-win” for him as a pastor and a business owner.
“I would hire ten immigrants right now and go buy ten trucks and put them on the road right now,” he said.” That would be an income for them. That's income for me that the city benefits immediately… When population drops, city income tax drops. Once you start that, then you get all of the shenanigans and price gouging.”
When asked about his presidential pick’s view on closing the border because “rapists and drug dealers” are coming across, Ringold responded, “That’s just a lie… At the end of the day, [Trump] is benefitting and every other employer is benefitting.”
He said increased immigration to Warren would give him the opportunity to do “mission work” and fill his church’s empty seats.
Stout said she’s concerned the influx of immigrant labor has the potential to create a new “slavery system” and Jim Crow in America.
“I think the real concern about immigration is whether or not we develop a whole second-class tier of worker,” she said. “ In other words, all of this oppression that immigrants are facing and the threat of deportation that is being... bandied about by Republican Congresspeople, it is set up to create a second tier of worker: the immigrant worker who can easily be deported. So what happens when those workers say, 'Hey, we need a raise, and we're going to organize?' How do you organize a union when you're under threat of deportation?”
DeCavitch said she agreed with Stout.
Top local issues and lines they’re unwilling to cross
When asked to sum up their top local issues in a few words, the panel said:
DeCavitch: “Infrastructure.”
Marwan: “Leadership.” He wants “new blood” in local government.
Ringold: “Youth.”
Stout: “Public transit.”
“Trumbull County is not serious about public transportation,” Stout said. “We need to be if we're going to be serious about the economy. If they want to attract employers to the area, we need to have public transportation.”
Trumbull County currently has two bus lines, operated by the Western Reserve Transportation Authority. Both of them serve Warren, with the nearest stop roughly six miles from Julie's home in Niles. The future of these routes is uncertain. They're only funded through March 2025.
When it comes to lines they won’t cross to support a candidate, Stout doubled down on her lack of support for Harris over the Israel-Hamas war, which has left more than 40,000 Palestinians dead, according to the Associated Press. She said she stands by that even if it means a victory for former President Trump, a Republican.
DeCavitch and Ringold were both concerned about the way candidates talk.
“Rhetoric is a pretty important one to me,” said DeCavitch, who is a member of the LGBTQ+ community. “I think that sticking with minorities is one of the more important things to me. [Trump’s] rhetoric against minorities only fuels more hate against minorities, and it fuels things whether he is attached to it or not.”
That’s why Ringold changed course in 2020 to vote for Biden, but he said that he may be willing to overlook Trump’s inflammatory language because of other issues, like the economy. That red line, he said, had changed.
At the end of the conversation, the group shook hands, lingered to chat and grabbed some pizza for the road.
Despite their differences, the group talked about the importance of having discussions with people of differing political opinions.
Sitting down with people who see things differently can expose you to the positives they see, said Ringold. Hearing about the real estate turnaround Alie described brought him hope, he added.
"There are some positive things that are on the brink happening here in Warren," he said. "If they can come to fruition that would be great. We need it. My church needs it. Everyone here needs it."
Too, sitting down with people who completely disagreed was a somewhat unexpectedly pleasant experience, Alie said.
"Here we are having a good conversation," he said. "There's no arguments. There's no excessive debating. That right there should tell people that anybody can just sit down and just work things out and talk."
