Many said they're willing to look past the former president's previous anti-Muslim rhetoric and temporary ban on travel from six Muslim-majority countries, including Somalia, during his administration. Immigration from Somalia plunged while Trump was in office, when the United States went from granting 1,797 visas to Somali immigrants in 2016 to 464 in 2019.

Hirsi said he is not persuaded by arguments that the Republican nominee's harsh rhetoric on immigration and other topics amounts to racism. "They convinced me the first time when he was running that Trump is a racist and he hates us," Hirsi said. "Actually, Democrats are bad for the country."

But he said it's not just economic issues that are driving his support for the former president. Several Muslim parents have protested LGBTQ policies and books at Twin Cities schools, and Hirsi said he's concerned about what his two young sons are being taught in the classroom. "We really don't have freedom of religion," he said. "I'm opposed to transgender and LGBT stuff."

Some Somali voters said they're willing to look past Trump's anti-immigration rhetoric. Fatumo Nur voted for Trump in 2016 and Biden in 2020 but plans to vote for the Republican again this fall. He's "noisy," she said of Trump, but "not a bad guy."

Imam Abdirisak Duale, a longtime Republican activist from East Grand Forks, Minn., called Trump's previous remarks about Somalis "unfortunate and divisive." "While I may not agree with everything he says, I support many of his policies that prioritize national security, economic growth and religious freedom," Duale said. "It is important to look at the overall impact of his policies."