Two Macomb County Voters Make Opposite Choice for President

Macomb County — home of the “Reagan Democrats” — played an outsized role in the election of President Trump in 2016, and in turning Michigan red for the first time in three decades. 

“I do see inequality and systematic racism, I could see it growing up in Roseville, it’s everywhere, I think this president has done a lot to pour gas on the fire.” – Larry Louzon, Sterling Heights voter.

Will the county play a similar role in 2020? What are voters there thinking ahead of the election?

We won’t have a good answer to that question until after Election Day. But to get a sense of how some voters view the election, Stephen Henderson speaks with two Macomb County voters — both independents who agree on many issues, but who have come down on opposite sides of the presidential race.

Listen: Macomb County voters talk about their choices for president and other races in the November election

Guests

Larry Louzon is a voter from Sterling Heights who identifies as an independent. He says he voted Republican for most of his life, but now considers himself a “fence walker.” He plans to vote more Democratic in this election, in part because of how divisive the president has been.

“I see Trump as a bully most of the time. All the fighting is what I don’t like,” says Louzon.

Jaclyn Guzzo is a voter from Chesterfield Twp., who also identifies as an independent. She voted for Barack Obama twice, then for Trump in 2016, then for Gretchen Whitmer in 2018. She plans to vote for Trump again in November.

“We need a leader who is not afraid to stand up to other countries, we need a leader who will not back down…who is a bit narcissistic,” says Guzzo.