As US midterms approach, farmers decide what to plant and how to vote
News Source
โขThu, 29 Oct 2026 14:25:16 +0000
๐ฐ What Happened
Paul McKinney has grown rice in northeast Arkansas for four generations. Next year his family will plant much less rice and more soya, which is cheaper to grow. Fuel and fertiliser costs have jumped since the war on Iran started.
Farmers across the US are making the same hard choices. Arkansas, usually the top rice state, now has its lowest rice area since the 1970s. Urea fertiliser peaked about 39% over budget and diesel cost about 72% more.
Farm bankruptcies in the first nine months of 2026 were up 19% on last year and 73% on 2024. President Trump announced an $8bn fuel relief programme last week, after $12bn in tariff aid in 2025.
๐ The Backstory
Hallie Shoffner, a sixth-generation farmer, closed her family's 2,000-acre farm last year. Higher costs, lower crop prices and trade wars โmade the numbers stop workingโ. She is now running for the Senate as a Democrat against Tom Cotton.
Analysts say farm country could matter at the midterms. Texas and Kansas could send Democrats to the Senate for the first time in decades. But many rural areas stay safely Republican, and Cotton has far more campaign money.
๐ฏ Why It Matters
Farmers grow the food on your table. If they keep going broke, prices and supply can suffer for everyone.
Paul McKinney has grown rice in northeast Arkansas for four generations. Next year his family will plant much less rice and more soya, which is cheaper to grow. Fuel and fertiliser costs have jumped since the war on Iran started.
Farmers across the US are making the same hard choices. Arkansas, usually the top rice state, now has its lowest rice area since the 1970s. Urea fertiliser peaked about 39% over budget and diesel cost about 72% more.
Farm bankruptcies in the first nine months of 2026 were up 19% on last year and 73% on 2024. President Trump announced an $8bn fuel relief programme last week, after $12bn in tariff aid in 2025.
Hallie Shoffner, a sixth-generation farmer, closed her family's 2,000-acre farm last year. Higher costs, lower crop prices and trade wars โmade the numbers stop workingโ. She is now running for the Senate as a Democrat against Tom Cotton.
Analysts say farm country could matter at the midterms. Texas and Kansas could send Democrats to the Senate for the first time in decades. But many rural areas stay safely Republican, and Cotton has far more campaign money.
Farmers grow the food on your table. If they keep going broke, prices and supply can suffer for everyone.