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Great Lakes are now hotly contested political terrain Here are scenes from Ohio, one of the Great Lakes states where President Obama and Mitt Romney are looking for a route to 270 electoral votes.
In downtown Lorain, Ohio, volunteers work at the Obama for President office to promote early voting. President Obama and Mitt Romney are in a knockdown fight for votes in five Great Lakes states: Ohio, Wisconsin, Michigan, Pennsylvania and Minnesota.
Michael S. Williamson
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The Washington Post
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An ad for the PNC Bank chain hangs from the sixth floor of a downtown Cleveland parking garage. Cleveland, Toledo, Akron and Youngstown are on the long list of Upper Midwest manufacturing cities that lost population in the last decade, just like Detroit and Flint up in Michigan. Demographers call them “dying cities.”
Michael S. Williamson
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The Washington Post
In areas such as Lorain, Ohio, voters include union members and blue-collar workers.
Michael S. Williamson
/
The Washington Post
A section of the former Ford assembly plant just outside Lorain, Ohio, sits idle. The plant closed in 2006, and several thousand workers lost their jobs.
Michael S. Williamson
/
The Washington Post
A faded newspaper covers the window of a shuttered sandwich shop in Lorain, Ohio.
Michael S. Williamson
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The Washington Post
The U.S. Steel plant in Lorain, Ohio, recently laid off 40 employees.
Michael S. Williamson
/
The Washington Post
Eli Clements takes a break in Cleveland at a barbershop where he cuts hair. “We need the best, honest man for the job to get the economy going, and that’s the president,” he said.
Michael S. Williamson
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The Washington Post
While sitting on a park bench in Lorain, Ohio, with his wife, Dale Reichert said they have voted early for President Obama.
Michael S. Williamson
/
The Washington Post
Samara Knight is a volunteer in Cleveland for the Service Employees International Union. She’s knocking on doors and checking on the plans of registered voters.
Michael S. Williamson
/
The Washington Post
Samara Knight, working on behalf of the Service Employees International Union, is asking registered voters about their voting plans and whether they need transportation to the polls.
Michael S. Williamson
/
The Washington Post
Early voting has been brisk at the Board of Elections headquarters in downtown Cleveland. One of the vans donated by the voter advocacy group ProgressOhio to pick up and take those in need of transportation to the polls drops off people at the board's headquarters.
Michael S. Williamson
/
The Washington Post
Voters cast their ballots early at the Board of Elections headquarters in downtown Cleveland.
Michael S. Williamson
/
The Washington Post
Carolyn Reed works for the building services department at Cleveland State University. She paused while cleaning the auditorium where vice presidential candidate Rep. Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) had just given a speech. As for her vote, she's for the president. "I'm going to stick with Obama," she said.
Michael S. Williamson
/
The Washington Post
A billboard company recently took down 30 billboards in and around Cleveland that critics say were attempts to intimidate minority voters. The billboards featured a judge’s gavel and the words “Voter Fraud Is A Felony! Up to 31/2 years & $10,000 fine.” Still in place are these billboards with a counter-message: “Voting Is a Right, Not a Crime!”
Michael S. Williamson
/
The Washington Post
A sign that mocks the 2008 “Hope” campaign sign for Obama is in Stacey Farran’s yard. The Cleveland resident is voting for Mitt Romney.
Michael S. Williamson
/
The Washington Post
Ronald Workman has an after-work beer at the Czech Grill in Lorain, Ohio. He makes the minimum wage as a temp worker at a metal recycling plant. As a temporary worker he's not offered health coverage. He said he supports the president, because "at least with Obama, I might have a chance to get some health insurance."
Michael S. Williamson
/
The Washington Post
Many downtown bars in Cleveland are doing good business even on weeknights. The Ohio unemployment rate is lower than the national average, and there are many new businesses in the city.
Michael S. Williamson
/
The Washington Post
The Cleveland Museum of Contemporary Art opened a few weeks ago just east of downtown. The unusual building is part of a construction boom in downtown Cleveland.
Michael S. Williamson
/
The Washington Post
Rudolfo Irizarry, 51, said he gets several phone calls a day from one of the campaigns. The Lorain, Ohio, resident is an undecided voter.
Michael S. Williamson
/
The Washington Post
Kim Eitel takes photos of the sunset from a dune at Lakeview Park in Lorain, Ohio. She said that President Obama’s actions helped to keep “a roof over my head,” but she won’t vote for either presidential candidate in this election.
Michael S. Williamson
/
The Washington Post
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Section:/politics/decision2012
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