Posted on 11/09/2021 4:02:48 AM PST by Kaslin
ERIE, Pennsylvania -- Voters in the Keystone State, as in Virginia, took Tuesday's election as an opportunity to rebut Democrats' overreach. Driven by the loudest voices in their national party toward issues of social justice, "intersectionality" and "climate justice," Democrats suffered for ignoring everyday issues such as inflation, crime and education.
With mail-in ballots still pending, Republicans are poised to sweep all four of Pennsylvania's statewide judicial elections. They also made gains in municipal races.
In the collar counties surrounding Philadelphia, voters echoed the same dissatisfaction with Democrats that was displayed in the surprising results in neighboring New Jersey. This corrected some of the suburban losses that Republicans had experienced in Philly during the Trump years. In Bucks County, where Republicans have struggled to hold any local elected office in the last four years, they kept the district attorney's office in their column and picked up offices for sheriff and prothonotary. In Chester, where Republicans became extinct in row offices four years ago, the races were still close to call.
Here in Erie, a critically important bellwether county for next year's high-profile races for state governorship and the U.S. House and Senate, voters chose the Republican candidate for county executive in a seat that has been held by Republicans only twice since 1978.
Down in southwestern Pennsylvania, which has been trending rightward since Democrats started shedding working-class voters in favor of an elite ascendant coalition around 2010, Republicans swept most row offices in the collar counties that surround Allegheny County and Pittsburgh.
Republicans were smart on candidate recruitment and localized rather than national messaging. In places where they had lost elections in recent cycles (Bucks County especially), Republicans dusted off some of their old-fashioned blocking and tackling moves and won races.
Pennsylvania has been inching toward the GOP since former Vice President Al Gore carried it by 4 points in 2000 -- 3.5 points ahead of his national popular vote margin. For former President Barack 0bama, Pennsylvania was only 1 point friendlier than his national margin in 2012. For Trump's victory in 2016, the commonwealth finished just under 3 points more Republican than the national result. In 2020, although resident Joe Biden won, the margin in Pennsylvania was just over 3 points more Republican than Biden's national victory margin. That last result produced unexpected gains for Republicans in the state Legislature in a year where Democrats had hoped to take over both houses.
Former GOP state party Chairman Rob Gleason said Tuesday's results come as more good news for Republicans, not just ahead of next year's big races, but also thinking further ahead for 2024. "It is also good news for the conservative movement to continue to build the party from the most granular level up in local seats that have daily impact on their lives," said Gleason of the all-important party-building.
"Republicans made gains in races that a year or two ago they may have had no business running and won. That's big," Gleason added.
Democratic strategist Mike Mikus said his party suffered setbacks on a number of fronts. "Enthusiasm, turnout, and that fatigue that happens after your team has won a big election the year before," he explained.
The western Pennsylvania professional said the message going forward for the party has to be more forward-thinking to earn back suburban college-educated voters who slipped right in this cycle, "as well as the working-class voter who we've struggled with in recent years," said Mikus.
The other interesting movement right here in Pennsylvania is the surge in Republican voter registration in the state; last year, just before Biden narrowly won the state, Democrats enjoyed a 700,000-plus advantage in registration over Republicans; just before Tuesday's election, that number had dropped by nearly 100,000 voters.
"All of these trends show me that Republicans are on track for a solid night a year from now, in particular with the kinds of voters who responded positively to the Republican message; you saw traditional suburban college-educated voters coming back to the party at the same time Republican candidates continued to earn working-class voters as well," said Gleason.
"That is a diverse coalition that I don't think people understand is strengthening," said Gleason. "These voters are finding they have a lot more in common than they realized, and they voted together on commonsense issues that affect all of their communities. That is powerful."
“Rebut”?! It’s Rebuke. Do these idiots know anything?
PA went for Trump too but these communist f-er’s stole it.
Like most states in the Union, Pennsylvania would always be Republican if it weren’t for the big cities.
ONLY because the RINO-controlled legislature allowed the cheat-by-mail-in ballots and did nothing to enforce voter ID. Every one of those RINO traitors are still in office. Vote every last one of them out during the 2022 primary and replace them with fearless patriots or else 2024 will be stolen again.
Holding the state supreme court seat in Republican hands is not a rebuke.
The communists retain a huge majority on the state supreme court and are the biggest obstacle to fixing the rigged election in the commonwealth.
“Rebut”?! It’s Rebuke. Do these idiots know anything?
—
It spell checked! It’s good! ;-)
There is a near 100% chance the Pubbies will squander any opportunity they currently have. They’ll roll a Bushie back in for governor, forcing people to sit the election out.
You got that right. I changed my status to “Independant” last January. I’ll never, ever, ever, ever vote for another “compassionate conservative”.
They advertised as a group and stuck together, so anyone that paid attention knew who to vote for.
I can't remember when this has ever happened, maybe pubbies are getting smarter.
Lou Barletta is a lot of things, but he is not a bushie.
Lou will be the pubbie candidate and given how screwed up Wolf has been for the demonRATs and our trans sec of health that has now become an admiral on the HMS Pinafore, a pubbie should win the gubbernor's race in PA next year.
Oh give me a break, A homeless guy in California would know as much about PA politics as Gleason. He ruled over 20 years of perpetual failure in PA as state chair. A classic blue blood country club Republican who did absolutely nothing, but threw money at the state party to waste on their stupid popularity contests for party endorsements. Never knocked a door or won a vote. Just another club to buy some friends, just another rotary club, a place to drink. Another establishment party hack who had no use for Trump but took credit for Trump winning his state and Toomey who only won on Trump’s coattails. Signed former PA state committee member.
Gleason wouldn’t know what a conservative anything is if it smacked him up against his face. He would rather hang at the bar with Arlen Specter than ever be seen with a uncouth baffoon like Trump.
A republican governor and a republican house/senate gave Pennsylvania the highest gas tax in the nation.
When Corbett took over the governor's mansion in 2010, the GOP had substantial majorities in both houses and there was a bill to assign Pennsylvania's electors on the same basis as Maine and Nebraska (two for the statewide winner, one for the winner of each congressional district), it was Gleason who killed it.
Given that the worthless GOP won't do anything about the rampant vote rigging in Philadelphia, I believe this is the best deal we could get short of expelling Philly from the Commonwealth.
YOU are So RIGHT, I believe I’ve posted that a couple of times over the years. Not just PA, but all the rust belt states with R majority legislatures. Obama would not have won a second term. That is actually More constitutional than the how the constitution was written. And it is the only solution for vote fraud (for presidential) for at least a generation. You know the Dems would have done that a lot time ago if the shoe was on the other foot. It would neutralize the vote of the cities just like how each state has equal representation in the Senate, to neutralize the power of states populations. Candidates would be forced to campaign everywhere and all the people of every state would have more of a say in who is president. Finally someone gets it! You made my day!
YOU are So RIGHT, I believe I’ve posted that a couple of times over the years. Not just PA, but all the rust belt states with R majority legislatures. Obama would not have won a second term. That is actually More constitutional than the how the constitution was written. And it is the only solution for vote fraud (for presidential) for at least a generation. You know the Dems would have done that a lot time ago if the shoe was on the other foot. It would neutralize the vote of the cities just like how each state has equal representation in the Senate, to neutralize the power of states populations. Candidates would be forced to campaign everywhere and all the people of every state would have more of a say in who is president. Finally someone gets it! You made my day!
“highest gas tax in the nation”
Exactly AND the only governor to ever lose reelection in PA history. Dem or Republican.
The Mundt Plan; it’s time has come!
I did the same thing and plan to donate what I can to get RINOs out of office.
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