Culture wars, abortion and conspiracy theories: what the midterms tell us about the US – podcast

Florida used to be seen as a swing state but in recent years it has lurched further and further to the right. Now there are worries democracy itself is under threat

Ahead of the US midterm elections, Oliver Laughland travelled around Florida to find out what really mattered to the people getting ready to vote. He told Michael Safi how he travelled to Disney World, and found the happiest place on Earth" had become a political battleground thanks to a controversial bill curtailing the teaching of sexuality and gender identity in schools.

Elsewhere he met Charlie Crist, the politician trying to take on Ron DeSantis - the Florida governor who is seen by many as the successor to Donald Trump. And he heard how the Democrats are hoping the backlash against the scrapping of Roe v Wade, which protected the right to abortion in the US, could help their party.