Paths Magazine

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January 18, 2025

By Kiran Mediratta and Tobias Straus

In November, Republican Bernie Moreno defeated Democrat Sherrod Brown to flip Ohio’s blue Senate seat red, contributing to the Republican victory over the chamber and solidifying Ohio’s status as “Trump Country.” Knox county, where Kenyon resides, has always been a Republican stronghold; it hasn’t voted for a Democrat since Lyndon Johnson in 1964. 

Yet Kenyon, of course, remains deeply blue. Our campus is largely isolated from its surrounding environment, perched atop its secluded hill, forming a political bubble. It’s rare that Kenyon students are exposed to the politics of our neighbors.

So when we heard that Moreno would hold a rally in downtown Mount Vernon, guest starring Senator Lindsey Graham and Donald Trump Jr., we jumped at the chance to meet our neighbors and escape the near uniformity of the politics we’re exposed to at Kenyon. 

Kenyon’s politics, we found, can be infamous in Mount Vernon. Identifying ourselves as Kenyon students was an excellent foray into today’s political spirit: 

“We know what Kenyon is,” a man told us. He was wearing a “Make America Great Again” hat and a Bernie Moreno shirt.  “You’re not one of them, are ya?”

“A student?” we asked. 

“A liberal.” 

When the political heat is on, it’s easy for people to reduce groups to ideological labels. And although the accusation was tinged with a kind of jovial antagonism, the man’s assumption wasn’t out of place. The American public in general has become heavily polarized and increasingly politically segregated. 

With the knowledge that either outcome of November’s election would mark a significant political moment, Paths Magazine reporters took advantage of Kenyon’s location to get a sense of “Trump Country.” We attended then-Senate-candidate (now Senator-elect) Bernie Moreno’s rally in downtown Mount Vernon exactly a week before the election

Listening to the candidates, speaking to the attendees, and getting a sense for the spirit of the rallies granted insight into our political moment. Escaping from Kenyon’s rarely penetrated bubble allows for a greater understanding of this country and its people, a crucial first step in understanding our nation’s political differences, and maybe overcoming them.

The Bernie Moreno Rally — Mt. Vernon

President-elect Trump’s rallies have always been a subject of pride. During the 2024 presidential debate, Vice President Kamala Harris used Trump’s apparent fixation with crowd size to sidetrack him from a question about why he killed a bipartisan border bill. “Why did you try to kill that bill, and successfully so, that tried to put thousands of additional agents on the border?” he was asked. “We have the biggest rallies, the most incredible rallies, in the history of politics,” he answered.  

Watching politicians speak on the steps of the Mt. Vernon chapter of the Republican party felt like being transported to another time. Our generation receives so much political information from the internet that it’s hard to believe these local rallies were once the central element in presidential campaigns; hard to believe those icons on social media are people right in front of you. They’re always smaller than you imagine. 

The speakers stuck to the points that came to define the Trump campaign. Transgender athletes were condemned. Elon Musk was praised; electric cars were panned. Biden and Harris were blamed for the wars in the Middle East and Europe. The economy and immigration were central.

“As someone who came here legally, if you’re in the United States of America, and you are here illegally, come January 2025, you’re gone,” said Moreno. 

“Think about this, the son of a billionaire—what’s he have to do here in Knox County, Ohio?” he asked, hyping up the crowd in an introduction to Donald Trump Jr., the final and most highly anticipated speaker at the event. In small towns like Mount Vernon, the presence of the president’s high-profile son is a publicity boon.  

“Donald, why are you going to Ohio? It’s not a swing state; it’s MAGA country. And it is! But the reality is this: we need a full slate of Republicans in office to help my father,” Trump Jr. told the crowd.  

The speeches ended with an eruption of USA chants, waving, and photos. The street was bustling with energy, everyone trying to grab another look at the speakers before the bus pulled out. In the commotion, we were given a valuable chance to gather local perspectives.

“America is tanking,” said Tammy Lilly, President of the Morrow County Republican Women. “We have to turn the page, as Mrs. Harris says. And unfortunately, the way that they’re trying to turn it is not going to be good for America. It’s not going to be good for your generation.” 

Ms. Lilly was particularly worried about Issue no. 1, a now defeated amendment proposal that would have instituted a redistricting commission to reduce gerrymandering in Ohio. Ms. Lilly was adamant about maintaining the current system, stating that if Issue no. 1 was to pass, “our votes would be taken away.” She wants to do everything in her power to preserve America from “tanking,” even if it’s not just for her own sake.

“I’m in the elder season of my life, so a lot of these policies won’t even take effect. It’s really not going to affect me, but it’s really going to affect you guys,” she said. 

And while age has, for a long time, been a key demographic for Democratic candidates, the age divide diminished drastically in this last election. Yet political polarization remains on voters’ minds, from Gambier to Mount Vernon to Washington. 

“I’ve always stood behind the fact that I’m going to believe how I want to believe,” said Dudley McDougal, a Knox County firefighter volunteering at the rally. “ I’m going to respect your beliefs, and we can still be cordial with one another. There should be healthy conversation that takes place… It’s about taking your ideas and my ideas and letting us all hash this out, and we can come up with compromises.”

On the outskirts of the crowd, a different song was being sung. Four protesters held signs and exchanged heated insults with the majority. “People had their fingers inches from our faces; they were hitting us with their signs,” they told us. 

One protester, who asked us not to use her name, told us that she was concerned about Moreno’s abortion policy. “To restrict peoples’ rights to healthcare to the point where you’re putting so many women at risk of dying, I think is a major fascist tendency.” 

“GO HOME FASCIST,” one sign said. “It was going to say ‘go home fascists, but I ran out of space.” 

Despite a desire for discussion and compromise, gone are the days of Ronald Reagen’s 525 electoral votes, or even Barack Obama’s 365 votes  a mere  twelve years ago. A once purple Ohio continues to redden—while other parts of the country drift the opposite direction.  The relationship between Gambier and Mount Vernon perfectly, and unfortunately,  encapsulates this country’s political phenomena. While both sides often reduce one another to ideological caricatures—trading disapproving looks, questioning intelligence or strength—we remain strangers to our neighbors outside the political identifiers on a Knox County election summary. Step beyond the bubble and engage; understanding begins with conversation; let’s go and meet our neighbors.  

Kiran Mediratta and Tobias Straus can be reached at mediratta1@kenyon.edu and straus1@kenyon.edu.

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