Republicans in Pennsylvania showed an unprecedented level of strength and resolve, successfully unseating a six-term incumbent congressman along with the state’s longest standing Democratic senator. The GOP worked tirelessly and throroughly to secure all the state’s key offices: attorney general, auditor general, and treasurer. They also masterfully turned a Democrat-leaning local county into a GOP stronghold, steadily narrowing the gap in terms of the Democrats’ hold in the rest of the state. Playing their vital role in the re-election of Donald Trump, they celebrated what has been arguably the most awe-inspiring political turnabout in U.S. history.
This victory was largely attributed to Trump, who emerged victorious in Pennsylvania by more than 120,000 votes. Trump dominated in every northeastern county of this crucial battleground state, except for Lackawanna. Despite being a traditional Democratic stronghold, Lackawanna saw Trump making considerable gains, with nearly half of the votes going to the Republican candidate this round, compared to just over 45% in the previous election when he lost to lifelong Democrat Joe Biden.
Trump’s sweep of victory in the more rural areas was resounding. He received an overwhelming majority of support from Republican voters in those areas. For instance, in both Susquehanna and Schuylkill counties, Trump secured more than 70% of the presidential vote. He nearly hit that same marker in Carbon, Wayne, and Wyoming counties where his votes were north of 67%, showing the strength of Republican support even in the most rural parts of Pennsylvania.
In Luzerne County, where Republicans had taken hold of the voter registration majority for the first time since the 70s, Trump secured a resounding win. His margin of victory in this county was around 30,000 votes, representing nearly 60% of all the cast ballots in the presidential race. This marked a clear growth in his popularity compared to the election held four years prior.
When we talk about ‘voter registration advantage’, it refers to the situation where more Republicans are registered in a county than Democrats. This flipping of Luzerne County’s typically Democrat majority to a Republican advantage, a lead that’s increased to nearly 3,000 citizens – the impact of this could be far-reaching, having the potential to influence many generations of future GOP politics within the county.
With more Americans identifying themselves as Republicans and registering as such, the likelihood increases that their families will do the same, thereby influencing future political preferences. The trend towards a Republican majority is not unique to Luzerne County, but is beginning to permeate across the rest of the state of Pennsylvania due to a concentrated and continued push from the GOP to expand their ranks.
Even in traditionally Democratic counties, there has been a significant shift towards Republican registration. In the Luzerne County alone this year, the number of Democrats who switched to Republican outnumbers Democrats by nearly five times. Similarly, in Schuylkill County – a Republican stronghold where they outnumber Democrats nearly 2-to-1 – over a thousand Democrats swapped their affiliation to join the Republicans in 2024.
Despite Democrats in Lackawanna County outnumbering Republicans by almost 25,500 registered voters, even this substantial lead is gradually diminishing. During the 2020 presidential primary, Democrats outnumbered Republicans by nearly 41,000. Notably, this number has substantially reduced from about 60,000 in May 2009 due to ongoing political shifts.
This shapeshifting landscape was clearly evident in the recent Congressional District 8 election. Despite the area being a Democratic stronghold, the Republican nominee made significant strides there, gaining almost 44% of the vote. This marked a higher percentage than what previous Republican challengers managed to achieve in past elections.
While Democratic candidates managed to secure approximately 70% of the votes in their home county in previous elections, this was not the case this time around. The Republican candidate gained ground, significantly chipping away at the Democratic dominance, further highlighting the increasing dissatisfaction with Democratic policies.
Many Republicans we’ve spoken to attribute the victory, in part, to a growing disillusionment with the incumbent Democratic administration, criticized for its handling of security at the southern border and the rise in consumer prices. This dissatisfaction fueled the momentum of the GOP allowing them to regain lost ground.
A local Republican realtor and resident credited the shift in political winds to ever-changing connotations at the heart of the Democratic party. Many of the party’s propositions, she says, sit uneasily with voters. Along with her fellow electors, she proudly cast her Electoral College vote for the popular vote winners of Pennsylvania.
Michael Giannetta, a prominent area lawyer and supervisor at Scott Township, was a key player in this latest election cycle. He served as an elected delegate to the Republican National Convention that was held this past July in Milwaukee. Tagging alongside him at these and other political functions throughout the year was his 11-year-old son, Michael, who is already showing promising signs of a future in politics.
At his young age, Michael exhibits a passion for politics that goes beyond the casual interest. He frequently dons his suit, red tie, and cap during political events he attends with his father. The youth’s knack for public speaking, often practiced at a podium set up in their living room, hints at a promising future in politics. As his father shared this anecdote, he mused at the possibility of his son enjoying the support of the Republican voters, the newsmakers of the year, one day.