EXTON, Pa. — With just six weeks until the crucial presidential election, another Pennsylvania county has flipped from leaning Democratic to leaning Republican.
New Statistics In Luzerne County, there are 87,415 Republican voters and 87,332 Democratic voters.
Luzerne County Republican Party Chair Gene Ziemba said the party's new 83-vote advantage marks the culmination of a trend that began nearly a decade ago.
“We're successful because we're getting the message out there of the Republican Party,” Ziemba told The Post. “And that message is that we're the people's party.”
Republicans in Luzerne County lagged Democrats in total registered voters by more than 33,000 in 2016 and about 19,000 in 2020.
Despite this margin, former President Donald Trump won the county both times, which is why Ziemba is confident Trump will win a third time.
“We're not just going to win, we're going to crush them,” Ziemba said of Republicans' chances of victory this year.
The county, whose county seat is Wilkes-Barre, was once a center of coal mining and manufacturing, but is recovering from the decline of these industries due to the growth of its warehousing sector.
Luzerne County Bucks County falls into the redRepublicans in the latter — swing counties that include many of Philadelphia's wealthy suburbs — achieved this victory in July.
While Luzerne County is not considered a battleground county like Bucks County or other counties in eastern Pennsylvania, the county's election records have drawn national attention.
Two voters who were disenfranchised due to a lack of available ballots for the 2022 midterm elections have sued the county and are still hoping for a settlement.
With turnout expected to be much higher this year, Ziemba said he is “very concerned” that similar issues could affect the 2020 presidential election, which was held “across” the county.
“We're going to have staff ready to literally hand out pieces of paper via Zoom anywhere in the county,” Ziemba said of preparations for Election Day.
Republican House candidate Rob Bresnahan, of Pittston, also welcomed the voter registration trends in his home county.
“Northeastern Pennsylvanians have made it clear they're tired of being ignored by a modern Democratic Party that doesn't recognize the likes of Bill Clinton, John F. Kennedy and Franklin Roosevelt,” Bresnahan, who is challenging Democratic Rep. Matt Cartwright in Pennsylvania's 8th Congressional District, told The Washington Post.
“This party has prioritized open borders and policies that cripple our economy over safe communities and affordable everyday goods,” Bresnahan added.
