All eyes are on Pennsylvania this election cycle. Erie County demonstrates why (original) (raw)

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In April, Erie, Pennsylvania, resident Bekah Mook was undecided on the presidential election. She didn’t want to see another Trump term, but had concerns about President Biden’s age.

But with just over a month until Election Day, she said she’s now “all Kamala.”

“There's not one percentage of Trump in there,” said Mook, 34.

The change at the top of the Democratic ticket — when Biden suspended his reelection bid and Vice President Kamala Harris became the new nominee — has energized voters like Mook who were not happy with their previous choices. But polls suggest the race is still neck-and-neck in the critical swing state of Pennsylvania.

Erie County is the battleground within the battleground: The county — and the state — went twice for Obama, then for Trump in 2016, and for Biden in 2020. Demographically, the county also mirrors the state, consisting of a Democratic city center, conservative rural areas and ideologically mixed suburbs.

Driving down a neighborhood street, you get a sense of just how closely divided this place is: One yard is bedecked with Harris-Walz signs, and the next with "Trump 2024" and “Drain the Swamp.” Block after block, the signs compete with one another.

That means even slight movement to the left or right could have a significant impact.

County chairs say their voters are tuned in

Erie County Democratic Chairperson Sam Talarico said he’s seen a surge of enthusiasm since Harris took over at the top of the ticket.

Erie County Democratic Chair Sam Talarico stands in the local party headquarters. Don Gonyea/NPR **hide caption

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“It has been crazy, actually,” Talarico said. “I mean, we had 60 people on our volunteer list the day before [Biden] dropped out. And right now we have 310 people on our volunteer list.”

The issue, Talarico said, was “Joe Biden’s age, plain and simple.”

“There are a lot of people, I believe, especially younger people, that just weren't going to vote,” he said. “And they've been energized by Kamala Harris' entrance onto the stage.”

Across town, Erie County Republican Chairperson Tom Eddy acknowledges that Democrats have gotten a morale boost with Harris.

“All of a sudden, she becomes the best thing since sliced bread,” Eddy said. “Obviously, I think that's energized the other side because the other side, I think, was falling asleep with Biden.”

Erie County Republican Party Chair Tom Eddy sits in his office. Don Gonyea/NPR **hide caption

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But he said there’s no lack of enthusiasm among Republican voters, either. He has been particularly focused on encouraging Republicans to vote by mail, an area Democrats dominated in 2020. While Biden won Erie by just over a single percentage point in 2020, he won 75% of the county's mail-in ballots. The same dynamic played out for Democrats in the 2022 midterms and 2023 state judicial elections.

Democrats still hold a substantial lead in mail-in ballots requested this time around, but Eddy said the GOP is narrowing the gap.

“What I think is if Donald Trump can focus on the issues, the policies that he wants to implement, that things will go very well,” he said.

The economy, abortion and immigration are top of mind for voters

Across Erie, Democrats and Republicans alike tell us they’re worried about the economy. But Democrats also list abortion and protecting democracy as top priorities, while Republicans consistently say it’s the border.

“We’ve got 10, 15 million people coming into this country that we’re paying for,” said 82-year-old Trump supporter Rich Pisano.

Pisano also echoed false claims by Trump that these noncitizen immigrants are voting in U.S. elections. It’s one of several ways Trump is laying the groundwork to cast doubt on any election results that don’t declare him the winner.

Twenty-year-old Lacey Buswell is a student at Pennsylvania Western University’s Edinboro campus. She’s a Harris supporter who is concerned about protecting reproductive rights, and is turned off by Trump’s campaign rhetoric.

“He convinces people to follow ideologies that don't necessarily make sense or have any groundings,” Buswell said. “Like the stuff that happened in Springfield — it's kind of like fear mongering a lot. A lot of his stuff is not facts, and I don't like liars.”

Mook, the previously undecided voter who was raised in a conservative and religious household, said she’s also been turned off by the GOP’s language and hardline stances.

“Every other word that comes out of the Republican's mouth, I feel like is just bullying,” she said.

Mook, who works in health care and is studying to become a therapist, said she is feeling the squeeze of higher prices. But she doesn’t put the blame on Harris.

Thirty-six-year-old mother of two Jamie Billige said higher prices are one factor driving her vote for Trump.

“It's insane to raise a family right now, trying to buy groceries or afford anything, really,” Billige said. “Saving is virtually impossible. And I have a good job.”

Billige, who spoke to NPR while waiting to enter a Trump rally in downtown Erie, said she is also worried about immigration and crime. And she isn’t bothered by Trump’s varied legal troubles.

Supporters celebrate the arrival of Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump at a campaign rally at the Bayfront Convention Center on September 29 in Erie, Pennsylvania. Jeff Swensen/Getty Images **hide caption

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“It doesn't matter to me. I think we're going to be safer under him,” she said. “And I think that our economy is going to be better.”

In a neighborhood near downtown, 38-year-old Robin Williams said he has never voted, and doesn’t plan to this election cycle. He likes what Harris has to say about helping middle- and working-class people.

“But are they really going to do what they're saying, or are they just going to play us so they can get in office?,” he said.

“Turnout, turnout, turnout”

Standing outside a popular local donut shop, Erie County Councilman Andre Horton said this election could come down to one thing: “Turnout, turnout, turnout.”

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Horton, a Democrat, is focused on increasing turnout in “underperforming” districts where many Democrats are registered, but few get to the polls, including historically black neighborhoods in the city.

“You might have 600 register, 50 vote,” Horton said. “I believe that with Joe Biden winning Pennsylvania by 80,000 votes or less [in 2020], and Erie being the epicenter of Pennsylvania — as goes Erie goes Pennsylvania — we believe that if we dig those underperforming votes out in those districts, that we will have a profound impact on the election.”

Each of the presidential campaigns has its own door-knocking and canvassing operations in Erie. Labor unions have also been running their own efforts — including bringing in volunteers by the busload from union locals in other states — to support Democratic campaigns.

Labor voter outreach lanyards are displayed in an Erie, PA steelworkers union hall. Don Gonyea/NPR **hide caption

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In the final weeks before Election Day, Pennsylvania AFL-CIO president Angela Ferritto said her focus remains talking to workers every day about policy — not politics.

“The push is on to really help people understand how this is going to impact our jobs, our health care, our benefits, all the things that we care about as union members and the things that are important to us,” Ferritto said. “We want to make sure that we're getting out to as many people as we can."

“It’s constant”

One thing that Erie Democrats and Republicans can agree on is that living in a battleground county can be wearying.

Mook said her and her husband recently took a “news break” to escape the political ads and partisan bickering.

“It's constant. If it's not that, it's text messages,” she said. “Today I got six different text messages from, you know, ‘vote for blah, blah, blah,’ or ‘do you want to donate?’ And like — it's great, but there's a point where it's got to stop."

Billige also said she’s been frustrated by “constant” ads, especially when you’re just trying to have some fun with the kids.

“We were watching YouTube the other day for music — we were having a dance party in the living room, and every ad that came on was a Kamala ad,” Billige said. “It’s in your face all the time.”

But for 35-year-old Democrat Tess Jones, who recently moved to Erie from Texas with her wife, the opportunity to vote in a battleground is energizing.

“We're very used to seeing a sea of red,” Jones said. “And I think moving here, especially and knowing that our voice is going to be included in, especially the Electoral College decisions is astounding.”