News from rural America.

A voting shift by Virginia's rural Republicans helped Democrats win the November governor's race; Louisiana is adopting new projects to help rural residents adapt to climate change and as Thanksgiving approaches, Indiana is responding to more bird flu.

TRANSCRIPT

For the Daily Yonder and Public News Service, this is the news from rural America.

Recent election victories by Democrats may not predict next year's midterms, but analysis by the Daily Yonder shows a shift in rural Virginia.

Editor Tim Merrimah says rural voters stuck by the Republican Party in the governor's race, but by far less than in the last two elections.

He notes a 12-point shift in rural voters turning out for Democrat Abigail Spanberger.

And sometimes that can say something about how enthusiastic people are about the candidate and their party.

Turnout is almost always lower in off-year elections compared to presidential years, but Republican turnout in Virginia was down by 30 percent from 2024, when the state's rural vote went for Donald Trump by 34 points. - Rural voters were still favoring the Republican candidate by two to one.

So it's not as if Democrats turn the tide in these rural areas, but they do reduce the lead that the Republican party had. - Democratic wins in Virginia and elsewhere come as Trump's approval ratings are falling dramatically.

Rural parts of Louisiana's coast are at risk from climate change, but those communities can fight back.

Julia Tilton reports. - In the last 80 years, Louisiana has lost 2,000 miles of coastline to rising sea levels, erosion, and severe storms.

In the next 25, it stands to lose 7,000 more.

Cities like New Orleans have levies that flood-prone rural areas lack.

There are projects by the Corps of Engineers and Louisiana's Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority that could help.

But Allie Olson-Oski with the Environmental Defense Fund says the challenge is getting rural communities on board.

There is a level of distrust of government intervention with the Federal government coming in and changing communities.

Olson-Oskie says residents are becoming aware of how flood mitigation and elevating buildings could help.

If there is an opportunity for them to make their homes safer so that their homes may be passed down to their kids and grandchildren, that's a really, really important and exciting opportunity.

I'm Julia Tilton.

New bird flu outbreaks are hitting northern Indiana farms with 13 under quarantine.

More than 130,000 birds have been affected and the state's working to contain the spread, monitoring nearby farms as a precaution.

Indiana University epidemiology professor Thomas Duszynski says properly cooked poultry and eggs are still safe to eat. - The risk to humans is really, really low on these bird farms.

So most of us aren't coming in contact with these animals. but he says the loss of flocks can have a big impact on finances.

The farmer obviously has to replace those flocks, so there is a cost to doing that.

For the Daily Yonder and Public News Service, I'm Roz Brown.

For more rural stories, visit dailyyonder.com.