Amid the vice presidential debate festivities, CNN’s #MyVote camper arrived in Farmville, Va. as part of its nationwide tour. After setting out from Washington D.C., CNN correspondents Chris Moody and Vanessa Yurkevich gathered the opinions of local residents in various towns across the country.
“We started in New York after the Hofstra debate, and we’re heading all the way to Las Vegas, which is the last presidential debate,” said Yurkevich. “But along the way, Chris and I are stopping in key battleground states, and we are going to be talking to voters, the people who are going to help decide this election.”
Moody added, “The goal for us, as best we can, is to shut up and listen. Let people talk, listen to their concerns, not just run up to them and ask ‘Who are you voting for?’ but hear their life story, hear what they’re concerned about. And when you kind of hush for just a second, it’s amazing what people will tell you."
Moody and Yurkevich reflected on the differences that came from listening to the views of ordinary people, rather than political experts, and getting out of what Moody called the “campaign bubble.”
“The goal for us is to not speak to a single one of those political animals and to speak to people who the election is actually going to have an impact on and that is voters. One thing I have heard before this trip was that people don’t feel listened to. They feel they are always talked to, maybe even sometimes talked down to,” said Moody.
“We’re targeting certain communities that we want to speak with. So, we’ve spoken to someone who represents the disabled community. We’ve spoken to white working-class voters, who are making a switch in Scranton, Pennsylvania, from Democrat to Republican,” said Yurkevich. “We’re really hoping to get a real pulse on America and how people are feeling in this election.”
The pair were effusive with their praise toward Farmville and Longwood students as well as its handling of the debate.
“It’s been very easy, coming from another debate, and sort of been traveling for the past week. It was almost like: ‘Welcome to Farmville! Welcome to Longwood! Let us be at your service, and let us help you and make you feel welcome and at home,'” said Yurkevich. “It’s just been a pleasure to be here.”
Speaking about the vice presidential debate itself, Moody and Yurkevich noted the uniqueness of the debate as well as the exclusive opportunity presented to Gov. Pence and Sen. Kaine.
“I always love the vice presidential debates; they’re really my favorite,” said Yurkevich. “You just never know what you’re going to get. This is sort of their one ‘meet and greet’ for the American public.”
“This election has been so strange and different with many twists and turns. And here we have two long-time politicians speaking on a stage without Donald Trump or Hillary Clinton,” added Moody, who dubbed it “the most normal night in American politics in two years.”
A duck making a stand against Trump's refusal to release his taxes posed in front of the Republican candidate's face on the traveling CNN #MyVote trailer.
