High food prices are fueling a wave of political apathy among undecided voters in Wisconsin, threatening to sink Kamala Harris’s presidential bid.
Jessica Richert and Leland McKnight, a couple from Reedsburg, Wisconsin, had to make a 30-minute trip to stock up on groceries this weekend because all the stores near them are so much more expensive.
Since the transmission in their Chevy Tahoe went out, they had to take their daughter’s Dodge Ram to Jams 2 Bent & Dent, a discount grocery store.
Like many families, they have been hit by spiraling expenses. Richert had a $9,000 adenoid removal surgery in May, two weeks off work, car trouble, birthday presents for her children and costs associated with the upcoming school year.
The red-hot inflation has disillusioned many voters in the crucial state, and many are unsure whether Harris can resolve the crisis.
Leland McKnight, pictured, and his partner Jessica Richert are both potential Wisconsin voters. While they struggle with high food prices, neither of them is enthusiastic about either candidate.
Red-hot inflation has disillusioned many voters in the key state of Wisconsin, and many are unsure whether Harris can resolve the crisis.
Richert said The Boston Globe that politicians “will say anything,” meaning she is skeptical that a new president will lower prices.
“She can say that, but is it really going to happen?” he said, referring to Harris, who accepted the Democratic nomination just days ago. “Probably not.”
Nationwide, food prices have inflated More than 20 percent in the last four years.
Compared to the four years before the pandemic (January 2016 to January 2020), supermarket costs remained virtually stable and even declined for much of 2016.
While inflation has begun to slow, price increases since 2020 are largely here to stay, and consumers are feeling it at the cash registers.
The annual inflation rate fell to 2.9 percent in July, from a peak of 9.1 percent in June 2022.
While hanging out in the red pickup truck with McKnight in the Bent & Dent parking lot, Richert said he had never voted.
“I just don’t think it’s worth it,” he said.
Inflation has eroded about a third of the purchasing power of a $100 bill at the grocery store in five years, according to a new analysis.
McKnight said if he does vote, it will be for Harris, but he’s also not sure he’ll bother.
They’re not the only ones traveling 30 miles or more to get better deals on groceries, according to the Globe.
Bent & Dent is a trusted place for area shoppers looking for a bargain, as it sells discounted items. This usually means beaten-up cans, products that are past their sell-by date, and items from unknown brands filling the shelves.
A can of Campbell’s chicken noodle soup costs 89 cents at Bent & Dent, while at Viking Village Foods, a mile and a half down the street, the same item costs more than $2.
“Anything to save money,” loyal customer Steve Schara told the Globe as he walked into the store this weekend.
Harris and former President Donald Trump are well aware of how stingy many people across the country are.
They are particularly attuned to attitudes in Wisconsin, a state both campaigns see as must-win and where margins are razor-thin.
Trump has been criticizing Biden, and now Harris, for months on inflation.
He recently used a small box of Tic Tacs and a larger box, side by side, to illustrate his point.
Harris laid out her economic agenda just over a week ago, unveiling a plan to ban “price gouging” in supermarkets.
Former President Donald Trump held up a box of Tic Tacs to talk about inflation during an Aug. 14 speech billed as an economic address.
Meanwhile, Harris has unveiled a plan to ban “price gouging” in supermarkets.
But Bent & Dent buyer LeeAnn Hyzer remains disillusioned.
“I don’t think they can do anything about it,” he said.
Hyzer, 42, said her monthly food bills for her family of five have skyrocketed from $500 to $800 since the Covid-19 pandemic.
Buying chips and snacks for her children used to be a thoughtless task, but now, “you have to be more conscious of what you buy,” she says.
Hyzer is a true swing voter and has revealed that she is not sure who she will vote for in November. However, she is skeptical about the ability of either candidate to address her family’s issues.
Sauk County, in particular, where Hyzer lives, is one of the most decisive counties in the country. Voters in that county elected Trump in 2016 and Biden in 2020.
A surprise poll in early August found Harris leading Trump by nine points in Wisconsin.
However, most pollsters agree that Harris only has a 1.5 to 2 point lead in the state, well within the margin of error for most polls.
Jams 2 Bent & Dent is a discount grocery store that many Wisconsinites rely on now that food inflation has spiraled out of control.
A can of Campbell’s chicken noodle soup costs 89 cents at Bent & Dent, while at Viking Village Foods, a mile and a half down the street, the same item costs more than $2.
Amy Estrada, 44, is another potential undecided voter in Wisconsin.
Estrada said she is grateful to be able to earn $22 an hour as a machine operator, when many similar jobs in the area would pay $16 an hour.
She feels equally fortunate to be paying $1,100 a month for a mortgage instead of renting something comparable for around $1,800 a month.
But she notes that bills always pile up near the end of the month and is grateful to have a 15-day grace period on her mortgage.
He added that sometimes payments are made late because groceries cannot wait.
Estrada’s daughter, who just turned 19, is urging her to vote for Harris, but Estrada is still not convinced.
She sees herself as “Switzerland” in an increasingly polarized United States.
“I’m bothered by empty promises,” Estrada said, revealing that the last president he voted for was Barack Obama. “I hope they are fulfilled and not another disappointment.”
Analysis of data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics shows how much prices for everyday foods have risen over the past five years.
Kelly M., a stay-at-home mother in Wisconsin raising six children, told the Globe that it’s becoming increasingly difficult to feed a family of eight on her husband’s income alone.
The price increases almost give the feeling of being “punished” and that “there seems to be no end in sight.”
Deals almost entirely determine what her family will eat that night. She also relies on deals at Bent & Dent and a nearby Aldi.
Kelly, who described herself as conservative and religious, said she plans to back the Trump-Vance ticket but still feels alienated from politics.
For her, voting is no longer an aspiration to achieve change in the country, but rather a mere civic duty.
“We have to do it because we are citizens,” he said, adding that he doesn’t expect life to change that much no matter who is in the White House in January 2025.
