CINCINNATI — Thousands of people drove the Interstate 275 loop on Saturday morning, their cars decked out in flags, signs and bumper stickers supporting President Donald Trump.
The Cincinnati-area “Trump Train” was one caravan among dozens materializing across the country this election season, everywhere from New York to California to an impromptu parade in Omaha, Nebraska.
“The message is to promote our president,” said Carolyn Wainscott, who drove the I-275 loop Saturday. “Get out and vote. Just get out and vote.”
Wainscott said she came to the event hoping to have a good time with like-minded people and peacefully voice their support for the president ahead of Election Day.
“It was just exciting to do this and to think that we’re doing something positive,” she said.
John Kasten, who participated in another local pro-Trump caravan in September, said he hopes other drivers on the road take note of the message — not just the bumper-to-bumper traffic.
“I hope they, if they’re on the fence, it changes their mind,” he said. “It shows that he’s got so much support in the state of Ohio.”
While caravaners honked their horns, waved their flags and played patriotic music, Democrats in nearby Clermont County sought to gain ground for nominee Joe Biden with old-fashioned canvassing.
“They are going in circles,” said canvasser Patty Lawrence. “We are going door to door.”
Like the I-275 loopers, Lawrence said she feels the crunch of a rapidly approaching Election Day. The Biden-Trump contest has drawn an enormous number of early voters throughout the United States, and its result will represent either a rebuke or a reaffirmation of one of the most controversial presidents in living memory.
“Biden and (Sen. Kamala) Harris are the pick because we believe in unity and restoring dignity,” Lawrence said.
Wainscott said her support of Trump represents the same thing.
“I am doing this because I just want to do it,” she said. “This is for the good of our country. This is for our constitution.”
