当总统唐纳德·特朗普在...举行集会村庄退休社区上周在佛罗里达州，斯坦和卡罗尔·斯维斯和其他特朗普支持者一起提前几个小时出现，兴奋地看着他发言。
“实际上，我们在最后时刻帮助抬着他选举卡罗尔·斯维斯告诉《夜生活》。”“所以我认为他对我们有好感，我们只想确保我们在他身边，当然，我们也在。"
瑞士人居住在全国最大的退休社区，共有13万多名居民。这些村庄分布在奥兰多西北的三个县之间，在2016年成为头条新闻，当时一些居民组织了一场高尔夫球车游行，支持特朗普的总统竞选。那一年，68%的社区(主要由白人共和党人组成)投票支持特朗普。
保罗·轩尼诗/NurPhoto通过盖蒂图像，文件
2020年10月3日，奥兰多北部的退休社区佛罗里达村庄，居民们排队参加高尔夫球车游行，支持唐纳德·特朗普总统连任。
这个充满活力的地方拥有2700多个社交俱乐部，从围绕体育、艺术和流行爱好的广泛俱乐部，到像“凯尔特人的一切”和“村庄的占星家”这样的利基俱乐部还有300多个高尔夫球场，免费夜间音乐和舞蹈。大约60，000辆高尔夫球车作为居民的一种受欢迎的交通工具四处逃窜，其中80%的人必须超过55岁，无论他们是租房还是买房。19岁以下的人也不允许永久居住在那里。
斯坦·斯维斯是“特朗普村民”俱乐部的选举主任。尽管许多住在村子里的人已经支持特朗普，但这位77岁的前保险高管一直在努力招募更多的邻居站在特朗普一边。
“特朗普总统已经说过了，我帮助州长(罗恩)德桑蒂斯和参议员(里克)斯科特竞选，根据他们三人的说法，我们赢得了所有的选举，”斯坦·斯沃斯告诉《夜生活》。“所以他们都承认，如果不是因为佛罗里达中部，尤其是《村庄》，他们会输。”
美国广播公司新闻
村退休社区特朗普社会俱乐部村民选举主任斯坦·斯威思(Stan Swies)一直在试图招募邻居为唐纳德·特朗普总统投票。
由于特朗普对冠状病毒的处理，他的支持率大幅下降民意调查两位候选人都在摇摆州积极竞选，只比他的民主党对手乔·拜登领先一点。在过去的六次选举中，没有一个候选人在没有拿下佛罗里达的情况下获胜。
考虑到这一点，“特朗普的村民”和“特朗普2020”俱乐部共同努力，筹集足够的资金在全州租用18块广告牌——每块高达5000美元——以展示他所说的特朗普的成就。
“我认为他已经做了他说他要做的事情——或者说大大改进了——直到边境墙，重建军队，”斯坦·斯维斯说，并补充说他希望人们看着广告牌说，“哇，是的。也许他确实这么做了。”
美国广播公司新闻
村民们为特朗普支付了遍布佛罗里达的18个广告牌中的一个，特朗普是一个社会俱乐部，由村庄退休社区管理。
然而，广告牌没有宣传特朗普对冠状病毒大流行的处理。斯坦·斯维斯说，民主党人围绕这一流行病的竞选努力“没有任何意义”，只要没有疫苗，这一流行病就“没有答案”。他还说，他不相信关于新冠肺炎利率的报道。
他说他不怕感染病毒，他和卡罗尔·斯威思只在某些情况下戴口罩，比如在杂货店购物。
“自3月份以来，我们没有做任何不同，”他说。“我们过着和现在一样的生活。我一周打三次高尔夫球……这就是我的生活方式。……我不会躲。我会活下去，如果上帝想让我死于病毒，那么我想我会这样死去。……我不害怕，我知道我的妻子卡罗尔不害怕，这就是我们的生活方式。我们甚至在考虑11月份去巡游。”
在《村庄》的另一部分，莎拉·布兰斯科也在政治上很活跃，她穿着拜登-哈里斯的t恤去当地的杂货店，表示对拜登-哈里斯的支持。
“所以当我每周来这里的时候，我不一定会买东西，”她告诉《夜生活》“有时候我只是拿着衬衫走来走去。我只是声明……拜登的粉丝来了。”
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乡村退休社区的居民萨拉·布兰斯科说，她有时去当地的杂货店不是为了购物，而是为了表示对乔·拜登的支持。2016年，68%的社区投票支持唐纳德·特朗普。
这位前教师每周六天在“乡村民主俱乐部”做志愿者，在其他活动中呼吁潜在选民。她投票给拜登，因为他说“他是个男人”。万一人们不知道……一个“男人”描述了一个正直的人，一个诚实的人。他给了我希望。我相信他对我们需要计划的事情有计划。"
60岁的布兰斯康说，她对总统处理疫情的方式“不满意”，她害怕感染病毒并将其传播给其他人。
“我很担心没有口罩。比如，不戴口罩没关系，你会在这附近看到。我想我们应该早点关门，早点得到通知。可能是强制面具，社交距离。(安东尼)福奇博士是我心目中的英雄之一，我认为我们应该多听听他的意见，”她说，她指的是美国最高传染病医生和白宫冠状病毒特别工作组的成员。
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乡村退休社区的居民萨拉·布兰斯康(Sara Branscome)在接受《夜生活》采访时谈到了为民主党做志愿者以支持乔·拜登。
布兰斯科认为，特朗普在老年人中的支持率已经下降，因为他对病毒的处理以及她所说的他的承诺缺乏回报。
布兰斯康说:“当我和我的朋友们交谈时，他们现在是‘拜登的共和党人’，这是一个越来越大的群体，我们问他们，对他们来说，病毒很大。”。“然后，看不到他们觉得他们在投票支持什么，(他们)希望什么:巨大的经济变革，巨大的医疗改革。我们只是没看到而已。”
斯蒂芬·斯塔鲁奇(Stephen Staruch)也是一名村民，他在2016年投票给特朗普，但今年寄出了支持拜登的选票。
“原因之一是我为自己的错误赎罪，”67岁的斯塔鲁奇告诉《夜生活》“当我犯了一个错误时，我没有承认的问题，我做到了。第二件事是有人要把这个国家重新团结起来。……我只想要我们的民主、法治、政府各部门之间的平衡。”
“退伍军人的待遇...从他第一次谈论约翰·麦凯恩开始，一直到傻瓜和失败者的评论...他只专注于自己，”他接着说，指的是一个大西洋匿名消息来源称特朗普发表了这些评论。“在我的一生中，我从来没有听到一个人这么频繁地使用‘我’这个词。……我们需要恢复与北约等国际伙伴的关系，让这个国家专注于从新冠肺炎事件中恢复过来，而他没有能力做到这一点。”
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斯蒂芬·斯塔鲁奇是“村庄”退休社区的居民，他说自己是一个终生的共和党人。然而，唐纳德·特朗普总统对流行病的处理是他投票给乔·拜登的原因之一。
斯塔鲁奇是联合包裹公司的前高管，他一生都是共和党人。
“我是10个孩子中的一个——不是一个富裕的家庭。我父亲在我4岁的时候离开了，就这样消失了。所以你会认为这对民主党来说是一个很好的背景，”他说。“但我认为在我的军旅生涯和公司生涯之间，随着时间的推移，你会成为一名商人。企业似乎通常与共和党站在一起，因为在某个时候，财政责任是什么。这是我最认同的。”
他还表示，他“无法想象”特朗普对疫情的处理“更糟糕”。
“第一，从感同身受开始，”斯塔鲁奇说。“当有人无谓地死去时，乔·拜登会与家人见面。总统就是这么干的。[特朗普]没有表现出任何这种行为。所以从拥抱科学，有一个全国性的计划，有测试，有追踪——所有这些我们应该能够做的事情——什么都不做，只是把事情政治化。然后因此妖魔化民主党州长。我的意思是，他把我们的责任外包给了50位州长，并说，‘去做吧’，结果我们得到了50个不同的计划。结果如何?”
像布兰科一样，他说他相信拜登会成为总统。
“他是一个可敬的人。你只需观察他处理事情的方式和他对事情的反应。他是发自内心的，”斯塔鲁奇说。“我毫不怀疑他告诉我的是可信的。他没有骗我。”
佛罗里达州有29张选举人票，是赢得白宫的关键，两个竞选团队都知道这一点。拜登的竞选团队和民主党全国委员会在全州范围内共花费了680万美元的广告，是全国各州中花费最多的。特朗普从新冠肺炎康复后不久，佛罗里达州成为重中之重，他在桑福德举办了一场活动。
特朗普竞选团队上周再次访问佛罗里达州，在村庄举行集会。卡罗尔·斯维斯说，特朗普的竞选团队提前四天通知了他们，宣布了集会，他们“不得不有点匆忙地组织起来。”斯坦·斯沃斯说，这可能是他们第20次看到总统讲话。
斯蒂芬·道威尔/奥兰多哨兵/TNS通过盖蒂图像，文件
2020年10月23日，佛罗里达州退休社区村庄，支持者在“让美国再次伟大胜利集会”上欢呼。
活动结束后，卡罗尔·斯威丝说，她不认为集会改变了任何选民的想法，“因为，老实说，那里的每个人都会投票给他。”然而，她的丈夫斯坦·斯威指出，特朗普要求“每个人都回家，给你的朋友、邻居、亲戚打电话，让他们出去投票。”
与此同时，拜登的支持者布兰斯科说，她不高兴特朗普在她的社区举行集会。她说，她不像担心病毒那样“太担心他激励共和党人”。
“看到所有这些人都不带面具，没有社交距离，这让我非常担心，”她说。“我将戴上两个面具，实际上，至少在接下来的两周内，我将远离人口最多的地方。”
尽管布兰斯康认为《村庄》不会支持拜登，但她希望能帮助削减特朗普的一些选票。
“他赢了68%对23%。如果我们能让他少于2比1的选票，那么我们就能帮助佛罗里达获胜，”她说。“我们有很多支持拜登的共和党人，也有很多支持拜登的无党派人士，这就是我们需要的，让那些投票支持(特朗普)的人比上次少得多。”
斯塔鲁奇正在翻转他的选票，并在这方面提供帮助，他说，他决定投票给拜登的部分原因是他想留给孙子们的遗产。
“我想，当他们知道发生了什么，历史书也写了，你知道，‘爷爷，你在2020年的选举中做了什么?’之后，他们会如何评价这件事呢?你说你是一辈子的共和党人。你只是(投共和党的票)因为那是你一直做的，还是你做了你认为正确的事?我想告诉他们我做了我认为正确的事。"
In Florida retirement community, Biden supporters try chipping away Trump's edge
When PresidentDonald Trumpheld a rally atThe Villages retirement communityin Florida last week, Stan and Carol Swies were among throngs of other Trump supporters who showed up hours early, excited to see him speak.
“We actually helped carry him in the lastelection,” Carol Swies told “Nightline.” “So I think he has a soft spot for us, and [we] just want to make sure that we’re there for him, which, of course, we are.”
With over 130,000 residents, the Swieses live in the country’s largest retirement community. Spread between three counties northwest of Orlando, The Villages made headlines in 2016 when some of its residents organized a golf cart parade in support of Trump’s presidential bid. That year, 68% of the community -- mostly comprised of white Republicans -- voted for Trump.
Residents queue up to participate in a golf cart parade in support of the re-election of President Donald Trump, Oct. 3, 2020, in The Villages, Florida, a retirement community north of Orlando.
The lively locality boasts over 2,700 social clubs, from wide-ranging ones surrounding sports, the arts and popular hobbies, to niche clubs like "All Things Celtic" and "Astrologers of the Villages." There are also over 300 golf courses, free nightly music and dancing. About 60,000 golf carts scuttle about as a popular means of transportation for the residents, 80% of whom must be over 55 years of age regardless of whether they rent or own their homes. People under 19 are also not allowed to reside there permanently.
Stan Swies is the elections director for the "Villagers for Trump" club. Although many who live at The Villages already support Trump, the 77-year-old former insurance executive has been working to recruit even more neighbors to Trump’s side.
“President Trump has said it and I helped run the election for Governor [Ron] DeSantis and for Senator [Rick] Scott, and we carried all the elections, according to all three of them,” Stan Swies told “Nightline.” “So they all admit if it wasn’t for Central Florida, and especially The Villages, they would’ve lost.”
Stan Swies, elections director for the Villagers for Trump social club at The Villages retirement community, has been trying to recruit neighbors to vote for President Donald Trump.
With Trump’s approval rating dropping substantially due to his handling of the coronavirus andpollsshowing only a small lead over his Democratic rival Joe Biden, both candidates have been campaigning aggressively throughout the swing state. In the last six elections, no candidate has won without taking Florida.
With that in mind, the "Villagers for Trump" and "Trump 2020" clubs worked together to fundraise enough money to rent 18 billboards throughout the state -- at up to $5,000 each -- to illuminate what he says are Trump’s accomplishments.
“I think that he has done what he said he was gonna do -- or improved it greatly -- as far as the border wall, rebuilding the military,” Stan Swies said, adding that he wants people to look at the billboards and say, “Wow, yeah. Maybe he did do that.”
One of 18 billboards spread around Florida paid for by Villagers for Trump, a social club that's run of out The Villages retirement community.
The billboards, however, don’t advertise Trump’s handling of the coronavirus pandemic. Stan Swies said Democrats’ campaign efforts focusing on the pandemic “doesn’t make any sense” and that there’s “no answer” to the pandemic so long as there isn’t a vaccine. He also said he doesn’t believe the reporting on COVID-19 rates.
He said he’s not afraid of catching the virus and that he and Carol Swies only wear masks in certain situations, like grocery shopping.
“We have done nothing different since March,” he said. “We live the same life that we have. I play golf three times a week … and that’s the way I’m gonna live. … I’m not gonna hide. I’m gonna live, and if God wants me to die of the virus then I guess that’s the way I’m gonna die. … I’m not fearful of it, and I know my wife Carol is not, and that’s the way we live. We’re even thinking of going on a cruise in November.”
In another part of The Villages, Sara Branscome is also politically active, going to the local grocery store with a Biden-Harris T-shirt on to show silent support for the Biden-Harris ticket.
“So when I come here weekly, I don’t necessarily buy stuff,” she told “Nightline.” “Sometimes I just come and walk around with my shirt. I’m just making a statement … that Biden fans are here.”
Sara Branscome, a resident of The Villages retirement community, says she sometimes goes to the local grocery store not to shop, but rather to show support for Joe Biden. Sixty-eight percent of the community voted for Donald Trump in 2016.
The former teacher volunteers six days a week with "The Villages Democratic Club," calling potential voters, among other activities. She’s voting for Biden because he says "he’s a ‘mensch. And in case people don’t know… A ‘mensch’ describes somebody with integrity, somebody who is truthful. He gives me hope. I believe that he has plans for things that we need plans for.”
Branscome, 60, said she’s “not pleased” with the way the president has handled the pandemic, and that she’s afraid of catching the virus and spreading it to other people.
“I’m very concerned with not having the masks. Like, it’s OK not to wear masks and you’ll see it around here. I think we should have closed sooner, been informed faster. Maybe mandatory masks, social distancing. Dr. [Anthony] Fauci is one of my heroes and I think we should’ve listened to him more,” she said, referring to the country’s top infectious disease doctor and member of the White House’ Coronavirus Task Force.
Sara Branscome, a resident of The Villages retirement community, talks to "Nightline" about volunteering for the Democratic Party in support of Joe Biden.
Branscome believes Trump’s approval among seniors has dropped because of his handling of the virus and what she says is a lack of returns on his promises.
“When I speak to my friends who are now the 'Republicans for Biden,' which is a growing group, and we ask them, for them, the virus is very big,” Branscome said. “And then, not seeing what they felt they were voting for, [what] they were hoping for: huge economic change, huge health care reform. We’re just not seeing it.”
Stephen Staruch, who is also a Villager, voted for Trump in 2016 but mailed in his ballot this year in support of Biden.
“One of the reasons is I atone for my mistakes,” Staruch, 67, told “Nightline.” “I don’t have a problem admitting when I made a mistake, and I did. Second thing is somebody’s got to bring this country back together. … I just want our Democracy back, the rule of law, the balance between the branches of the government.”
“The treatment of veterans ... from the time he first talked about John McCain all the way up to the suckers and losers comments ... his fixation is only on himself,” he went on to say, referring to anAtlanticreport in which anonymous sources alleged Trump made these comments. “I’ve never heard a guy use the word ‘I’ so much in my life. … We need to get our relationships with our international partners like NATO back and get this country focused on recovering from this COVID-19 thing, and he’s not capable of doing that.”
Stephen Staruch, a resident of The Villages retirement community, says he's been a lifelong Republican. However, President Donald Trump's handling of the pandemic is one reason he's voting for Joe Biden.
Staruch, a former executive at UPS, is a lifelong Republican.
“I'm one of 10 children -- not a well-to-do family. My father left when I was 4 years old and just disappeared. So you would think that'd be a great background for a Democrat," he said. “But I think between my military days and the corporate days, just over the course of time, you become a businessperson. And business seems to line up typically with the Republican Party because of what, at one point in time, was fiscal responsibility. That's what I would've identified with best.”
He also said he “couldn’t imagine” Trump’s handling of the pandemic “being worse.”
“Number one, start with things like empathy,” Staruch said. “There’s Joe Biden meeting with families when somebody’s died unnecessarily. That’s what presidents do. And there’s been none of that behavior demonstrated by [Trump]. So from embracing science, having a nationwide plan, having testing, having tracing -- all those things we should be able to do -- and doing nothing but politicizing the thing. And then demonizing Democratic governors as a result of it. I mean, he outsourced our responsibility to 50 governors and said, ‘Have at it,’ and we ended up with 50 different plans. How did that work out?”
Like Branscome, he says he trusts Biden to be president.
“He’s an honorable man. You just watch his handling of things and the way he responds to things. He speaks from his heart,” Staruch said. “And I have no doubt that what he’s telling me is believable. He’s not lying to me.”
With 29 electoral votes, Florida is key to winning the White House, and both campaigns know it. Biden’s campaign and the Democratic National Committee have together spent $6.8 million in advertisements throughout the state -- the most out of any state in the country. With Florida a top priority, soon after Trump recovered from COVID-19, he held an event in Sanford.
The Trump campaign again visited Florida last week to hold a rally at The Villages. Carol Swies said Trump’s campaign gave them short notice, announcing the rally four days prior, and that they “had to kind of hurry to get it all organized.” Stan Swies said it was probably their 20th time seeing the president speak.
Supporters cheer during a "Make America Great Again Victory Rally," Oct. 23, 2020, at The Villages, a retirement community in Florida.
Following the event, Carol Swies said she didn’t think the rally changed any voters’ minds “because, honestly, everybody there was gonna vote for him.” Her husband, Stan Swies, noted, however, that Trump asked “that everybody go home, call your friends, your neighbors, your relatives and get them out to vote.”
Meanwhile, Biden supporter Branscome said she wasn’t happy Trump held a rally in her community. She said she wasn’t “so much worried about him energizing Republicans” as much as she was about the virus.
“To see all these people who came without masks and no social distancing, that was very worrisome to me,” she said. “I’m gonna be wearing two masks and I’m actually gonna stay away from most populated places for at least the next two weeks.”
Although Branscome doesn’t think The Villages will flip for Biden, she hopes to help pare away some of the votes for Trump.
“He won 68% to 23%. If we can make it less than two to one votes for him, then we can help Florida win,” she said. “We have a lot of Republicans for Biden that joined us, and a lot of Independents for Bidens, and that’s what we need to make those numbers voting for [Trump] a lot less than they were last time.”
Staruch, who is flipping his vote and also helping in this effort, says that part of his decision to vote for Biden is rooted in the legacy he wants to leave his grandchildren.
“I think about how they’re gonna judge this somewhere down the road when they know what happened and the history books are written, you know, ‘What did you do, Grandpa, during the 2020 election? You said you were a lifetime Republican. Did you just [vote Republican] because that’s what you’ve always done, or did you do what you thought was right? I wanna be able to tell them I did what I thought was right.”
