Ohio鈥檚 largest industry is agriculture, with one in seven Ohioans connected to that industry. In the second installment in the Statehouse News Bureau鈥檚 series featuring voices of voters, people in the state鈥檚 farm community talk about what they鈥檙e thinking about when they decide which presidential candidate to choose.
An 80-acre patch of land in western Ohio becomes a farmers鈥� fair every September, with 140,000 visitors coming to the Farm Science Review near London. They wander through rows and rows of vendor booths and tents in the summer heat, seeing and hearing about the latest in farming equipment, technology, products, services and educational programs. And this year, they were also talking about politics 鈥� and their frustrations with the major party candidates for president. Grain farmer Don Jackson is from Waynesville in southwest Ohio, and said he鈥檚 voting for what he called 鈥渢he least of the worst鈥�. 鈥淲e don鈥檛 have a real good choice this year, do we? I鈥檓 a Republican, but I just have to shut my eyes this year and vote, I guess,鈥� Jackson said.
Hog farmer Dave Kreis is from Zanesville, and said he鈥檚 leaning toward Trump. 鈥淚 say that as a farmer, as a businessman, as an individual.鈥� Is there anything particular that he likes about Trump? 鈥淗e wants to make our country strong again, support the military and fight against the terrorists.鈥�
It鈥檚 hard to find a farmer who鈥檚 not voting Republican this year 鈥� and most years. But they鈥檙e out there. Dean McIlvaine is an organic grain and beef farmer in West Salem in Wayne County 鈥� and he鈥檚 voting for Clinton. 鈥淔armers traditionally have been more conservative. But the more progressive farmers, I believe are more Democratic and supportive of more progressive platforms, which Hillary has supported,鈥� McIlvaine said.
There are two main groups that speak for Ohio鈥檚 farmers and agricultural industry 鈥� the larger is the Ohio Farm Bureau with 200,000 members, and 60,000 of them are farmers. Adam Sharp is the executive vice president of the Ohio Farm Bureau, which does not endorse presidential campaigns. Sharp says one of the biggest issues to farmers is trade, since one in three rows of corn and soybeans grown in Ohio are exported. 鈥淭here鈥檚 a number of sectors out there that struggle with competition with China and we buy a lot more products than we sell to them. But in the agricultural world it鈥檚 the opposite,鈥� said Sharp. 鈥淲hat we don鈥檛 want to do is shoot ourselves in the foot when we鈥檙e talking about trade agreements. Many of these agreements have been working really well.鈥�
The Farm Bureau is seen as much more conservative than the smaller Ohio Farmers Union, which represents 4,000 farmers and consumers and tends to have a more progressive outlook. Joe Logan is the president of the Ohio Farmers Union and a farmer himself, in Trumbull County. He agrees that trade is a huge issue, especially with Trump talking about a 25% tariff on all Chinese imports. 鈥淭ariff is, of course, the most blunt instrument of trade reconciliation, and I think farmers think that there鈥檚 something wrong with our trade status and our trade agreements currently but a tariff is probably not the way to go,鈥� Logan said.
They agree that immigration is another big issue. Sharp at the Farm Bureau says farmers are focused on taxes, property rights, water quality regulations and food safety. Logan at the Farmers Union agrees on water and food safety, saying it鈥檚 a component of national security, but also climate change.
Back at the Farm Science Review, for every person who wanted to say who they鈥檇 vote for, someone else didn鈥檛. Nancy Carter and Candy Bostick are friends from Woodstock in western Ohio, and joked that they鈥檇 write in their own names for president 鈥� or, Carter said, vote for a third party candidate. 鈥淎nd my husband says, you鈥檙e just going to throw your vote away. Well, I鈥檓 going to throw it away either way you look at it, so I may as well throw it at something I might have a chance鈥�.鈥�
鈥淲hat makes a difference really?鈥� Bostick asked.
Several other people, perhaps in keeping with the famous independent farmers鈥� streak, refused to disclose who they鈥檒l vote for.
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