South Carolina shrimpers weigh costs, vote in crucial US midterms

Mount Pleasant, South Carolina – For Mark Marhefka, the weather can be the difference between a profitable fishing trip and a dangerous one.

As a shrimper and fisherman for 49 years, Marhefka relies on forecasts, weather buoys and data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to decide when it is safe to take his boats offshore. With storms and warm water temperatures disrupting this year’s fishing season, he worries that President Donald Trump’s proposed funding cuts could further reduce the services fishermen depend on.

“They’ve already started cutting back on NOAA, and they’re looking to do more in this next fiscal year,” Marhefka, who owns Abundant Seafood, told Al Jazeera. “It’s definitely something that we need to fight against.”

Since Trump returned to office in January 2025, NOAA has lost roughly 20 percent of its workforce, according to an analysis of federal employment data. The administration’s proposed 2027 budget would cut funding for ocean monitoring and terminate a programme supporting regional ocean observations.

But the weather is only one of the pressures facing South Carolina shrimpers as they head to the polls on Tuesday for the US midterm elections.

Rising fuel prices, equipment costs and competition from imported shrimp are weighing on people who make their living from the water.

Marhefka believes Democrats could address these pressures better than Republicans.

“Fuel costs have doubled since Trump has been back in office,” said Marhefka. “I voted Democrat because I really think Annie Andrews is going to help South Carolina.”

At an election-eve rally in Charleston on Monday, the state’s Democratic Senate candidate, Annie Andrews, sought to appeal to voters like Marhefka, arguing that her campaign would address the financial pressures facing coastal communities.

“I’m fighting for a South Carolina that we can afford,” Andrews said to the crowd. “I’m fighting to lower the damn diesel for our farmers and our fishermen and our shrimpers.”

Although shrimpers make up a small share of South Carolina’s electorate, their concerns raise bigger questions about the cost of doing business and retirement planning.

John Henry Middleton, an 81-year-old fisherman who has been shrimping for about 50 years, is an undecided voter. He says he is frustrated with both parties, arguing that politicians make promises but fail to work together on issues affecting common people.

“I want to see them get together and work for the good of the people,” he told Al Jazeera.

His concerns as he heads to the ballot box on Tuesday include the cost of living and whether he will have enough money to support himself in retirement. He said he has paid taxes and worked for decades, but still has to work at 81.

Kevin S, who declined to give his last name, works at Geechee Seafood on Shem Creek and said he plans to vote Republican on Tuesday. He said many people in the fishing industry lean Republican because they see government regulation as an obstacle to making a living.

“It’s a pretty regulated industry. A lot of red tape, a lot of extreme permits,” he told Al Jazeera, adding that some fishing permits can cost thousands of dollars.

Kevin added that rising fuel prices have increased the cost of running his business, but he doesn’t closely follow the factors driving those increases.

When asked whether the war in Iran was contributing to higher prices, he said he didn’t know enough about the issue to say. Instead, he pointed to Trump’s efforts to increase domestic energy production as a reason he thinks Republicans are better placed to address fuel costs.

He also believes many blue-collar workers share this view, but emphasised that industry support for Republicans does not necessarily mean enthusiasm for the party.

“I just don’t really trust Democrats as much to make the best financial decisions,” he said. “It’s not that a lot of people love the Republican Party. It’s more of a lesser of two evils.”

‘Not lavish living’

The pressures facing shrimpers are also evident in the dwindling number of businesses around Shem Creek, a historic fishing area near Charleston. Cindy and Taylor Tarvin, co-owners of Tarvin Seafood, estimate that only about eight shrimpers remain in the area. They say the decline reflects how difficult it has become to make a living in the industry.

“Younger captains can make a living, but not a lavish one,” Cindy Tarvin told Al Jazeera.

The Tarvins said their diesel costs rose sharply this year. They started the year paying $2.71 per gallon (3.78 litres), but by late September they were paying $5.99 per gallon. The American Automobile Association (AAA) reported that South Carolina’s average retail diesel price reached a record $6.17 that month.

Maintenance and equipment costs have also risen, adding to the financial strain on boat owners.

“There will always be a demand for watermen and what they produce. What scale they’re able to do it at is the big question,” Taylor Tarvin told Al Jazeera.

The Tarvins agree that one of the biggest challenges is the volume of imported shrimp entering the US market. Shrimp from abroad is often sold at lower prices, making it difficult for domestic fishermen to compete.

They said the influx of imports has contributed to falling prices and razor-thin profit margins, forcing some local boats out of business.

The competition extends well beyond South Carolina. According to the Southern Shrimp Alliance, the United States imported 1.59 billion pounds, or about 721,000 tonnes, of frozen warmwater shrimp in 2025, a 2 percent increase from the previous year.

In July 2026, the Trump administration imposed additional tariffs of 10 to 12.5 percent on imported shrimp from major suppliers including India, Ecuador, Indonesia, Vietnam and Thailand.

Trump’s tariffs on imported shrimp initially raised hopes among domestic shrimpers that foreign products would become more expensive and local catch more competitive. But the Tarvins said they have yet to see a meaningful benefit in the prices they receive, and are unsure whether they ever will.

There is another complication. Tariffs on imported steel, aluminium and products made from those materials have increased the cost of maintaining boats.

“So all of the pieces and parts that go into keeping a fishing boat running and keeping the equipment replaceable are affected by tariffs,” Cindy said.

For Marhefka, rising costs are part of a broader frustration with the country’s direction. He says he tries not to discuss politics often, but has heard growing frustration from those who voted for Trump and feel their circumstances have worsened.

“I just don’t think that we can go and handle another two more years of this,” he said. “We’re just getting squeezed too hard.”

Disclaimer : This story is auto aggregated by a computer programme and has not been created or edited by DOWNTHENEWS. Publisher: aljazeera.com