MOUNT AYR (Iowa)/WHARTON (New Jersey) • First-term US Representative Cynthia Axne, back home in her rural Iowa district for the Thanksgiving break, faced a room full of farmers last Saturday who made clear their opposition to the impeachment investigation of Republican President Donald Trump.
Ms Axne, 54, avoided any mention of impeachment until a constituent - a Democrat - said he saw the probe as a waste of time and money.
"Let's not vote for impeachment. Let's get stuff done. I'm sick of it," he said. Others nodded in agreement.
Meanwhile, 1,610km away in the industrial town of Wharton, New Jersey, Representative Tom Malinowski was treated like a rock star when he told a crowd of about 150 he believed the evidence to impeach Mr Trump was overwhelming.
These two freshman lawmakers flipped districts from Republican control in last year's midterm elections, two of the 41 net gains that helped Democrats regain control of the House of Representatives for the first time since 2011.
Yet on impeachment, as they face close fights for their seats again in November next year, their approach is starkly different.
Ms Axne avoids any mention of it; Mr Malinowski leans into the topic.
Polls show public sentiment about impeachment breaking along partisan lines, but the reaction of Democratic voters in these two swing districts suggests that there is also a rural and suburban divide on the issue among Democrats.
"I don't talk about impeachment," Ms Axne, who defeated Republican David Young last year by just two points, said in an interview.
"These are hard-working, salt-of-the-earth people who just want to make a living and provide for their families. They're tired of what they consider the bureaucracy and the politics of Washington and that's true to what Iowans are. Impeachment is not a priority in their lives."
Ms Axne supports the impeachment inquiry, and says if there is proof Mr Trump abused his office and harmed America's national security in his dealings with Ukraine, she will vote to impeach him - even if it means losing her seat.
To loud applause in his New Jersey district, Mr Malinowski said: "The President is free to pursue a foreign policy that he believes is in the national interest, but he is not free to pursue a foreign policy that only serves his political interest."
Mr Malinowski, 53, a Polish-born former State Department employee, was the first New Jersey House member to call for impeachment.
In a town hall in the neighbouring district on Monday, US Representative Mikie Sherrill saw a slightly divided crowd.
She had joined seven freshman Democrats in penning an op-ed in The Washington Post in September that was considered a tipping point in the Democratic efforts to impeach.
The first question came from a woman who criticised the impeachment proceedings as hollow and asked Ms Sherrill if she still supports the push. The question drew sharp boos and shouts of "sit down" from some members of the audience.
Five days of public hearings in the Democratic-led impeachment inquiry concluded last Thursday.
The probe is looking into Mr Trump's pressure campaign to get Ukraine to investigate Democratic presidential nomination contender Joe Biden and his son Hunter, who had served on the board of Ukrainian gas firm Burisma.
Asked how he was going to vote on impeachment, Mr Malinowski said he had not made a final decision, but added: "I think you can tell from my presentation that I believe the evidence against the President is quite strong."
REUTERS
