Bethlehem, Pennsylvania – Democrats in Pennsylvania's two-county Lehigh Valley region say they are confident in their field ahead of what is expected to be another close election in their longtime flagship region.
State Sen. Lisa Boscola (D-Bethlehem), a down-to-earth Northampton County legislator who has served the region for decades, and Allentown Mayor Matt Turk, leaders of Lehigh County's largest city, spoke Tuesday. told FOX News Digital.
Former President Trump won Northampton County in 2016 but lost it in 2020. Lehigh County (usually a blue county due to Allentown) is a rural, German suburb of Pennsylvania with reliably conservative voting precincts.
Tuerck, who also owns Band City USA, Pennsylvania's third-largest company, said he has heard firsthand from residents who primarily support Vice President Kamala Harris.
At the World Conference of Mayors in Mexico City, Tuerck said senior officials are coming to him with an interest in how national elections will play out based on the results in Allentown and his city. said.
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View of Allentown, Pennsylvania, the third largest city in the Commonwealth, from the Tillman Street Bridge. Founded in 1762 by Loyalist William Allen, the city underwent dramatic changes in the 20th century with the decline of its shopping center, but now boasts a hockey arena in the city center and the historic Americas It boasts new developments, including the revival of a hotel. Hamilton Street. (Charles Crates)
“I happen to come from one of the most volatile districts in the commonwealth…What I want to tell you is that Allenton residents, broadly speaking, support Kamala Harris,” he said.
“I know this because I'm actually knocking on doors. I go out every Saturday, sometimes Sunday, and campaign, not just Democrats, but independents and Republicans. Let's talk.''
Tuerck said Allentown is now a majority-Latino city, and like the town's patchwork of Pennsylvania-Dutch, Polish, British, and Syrian-American residents, they are also “monolithic.” ”, he pointed out.
But Allentown's Latino residents primarily worry about the same things: commodity prices, housing, and job opportunities.
“There are a lot of people who are concerned about former President Trump's rhetoric,” he said, adding that Republicans in the city often express similar concerns as Democrats in this regard.
”[They’ll] Please tell me they can't vote for that guy. [but] They have no intention of changing parties. ”
“But they're frustrated by the way Donald Trump talks about our country. They're irritated by the way he talks about people in trouble. So they want civility. And it's pretty repetitive. The topics are about things that people are interested in, mainly economic and housing-related issues. ”
Allentown is known for hosting America's oldest community band, the Allentown Band, which predates the Boston Pops, and was once home to Mack Trucks and home to Max Hess' famous band. department store It was located on Hamilton Street from 1897 to 1995. There, with the slogan “You'll find the best of everything at Hess,” people flocked from all over the Midwest for holiday shopping and world-famous strawberry pie.
In 1982, Billy Joel famously sang about “living here in Allentown,” but at the time Bethlehem Steel was “closing all its factories” across the river in Christmas City. The region was beginning to experience a long economic recession.
Since then, the area has undergone dramatic changes. The smoke from “iron, coke and chrome steel” has been replaced by the bright lights of SteelStacks, a casino and entertainment complex housed in the now-defunct giant building that gave it its name. I did.
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The former Bethlehem Steel blast furnace and chimney along the Lehigh River on the south side of Bethlehem. The area currently includes entertainment venues, a museum, a PBS affiliate, and a casino. (Charles Crates)
Not far from Mr. Boscola's office, Harris vs. Waltz signs are scattered along Church Street in Bethlehem's 18th-century “Moravian” neighborhood, and Trump vs. Vance signs along Nazareth Pike on the way out of town. began to peek out from between the placards of his opponents.
“We're a lead county, and I don't think there's a day that goes by that a surrogate, a family member, or the candidate himself doesn't come to the Lehigh Valley to vote,” Boscola said.
“Elections are happening everywhere, from the president to your local statehouse seat. The Democratic ground game is always strong. We have canvassers, phone banks, and nonstop text messages to extract votes. It is prepared.”
Issues in her district, which includes the Slate Belt of Northampton County as well as all of Bethlehem, which is divided into both counties by Monocacy Creek, include property taxes, the economy, immigration and abortion, she said.
Businesses continue to struggle to find employees, Boscola said, and voters are also bringing up criminal elements equated to the illegal immigration crisis.
The congressman, one of the Valley's longest-serving legislators, said his political message about government aid for illegal immigrants resonates among working-class residents.
When it comes to abortion, Boscola said she is not “extreme on either side” but has heard from people on both sides of the issue.
“They believe people should have the right to choose, but they're hesitant about on-demand tertiary abortions. They're looking for balance,” she says.
Boscola added that he is introducing a bill in the state Senate that would allow registered independents to vote in primaries. If passed, she predicted the Independents would soon become the fastest growing party in the region.
“Extreme ideas on either side will not work in the Lehigh Valley,” she said, echoing comments made by moderate Easton Democratic Mayor Sal Panto on Fox News Digital in a separate interview.
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Pennsylvania State Senator Lisa Boscola has represented the Christmas City of Bethlehem for over 20 years. (Office of Pennsylvania State Senator Lisa Boscola)
“At the end of the day, it's not about the ticket itself, it's about the individual. If you look at elected officials over the decades, like mayors and county executives, they're moderates,” the senator said. .
In Lehigh County, Allentown has had a succession of moderate-to-liberal Democratic mayors, including Tuke, Ray O'Connell and Ed Pawlowski, the latter of whom is currently serving a federal prison sentence for the emoluments program. .
At the turn of the century, Republican Bill Hite led the city and was considered as popular as his Democratic contemporaries.
Bethlehem Democratic Mayor J. William Reynolds ultimately did not respond to requests for an interview, but the last time the city had a Republican mayor was in the 1990s, when Kenneth Smith was elected after the bankruptcy of Bethlehem Steel. He led the city from
Republican Charlie Dent, a former Lehigh Valley congressman, was a moderate who particularly avoided supporting Trump and was frequently criticized for his backlash.
“Moderates will win in the Lehigh Valley because that's our core,” Boscola said.
“About 20 percent of Northampton County voters are independents, and party doctrine will not persuade them.”
But in the rural north end and suburban south end of both counties, Republicans often hold a majority on township boards.
These conflicting dynamics illustrate why races are often so close in the Valley.
In response to Tuerk's comments, Kush Desai, the Trump campaign's Pennsylvania campaign spokesperson, said Democrats “most Republicans want four more years of unlimited illegal immigration, rising prices, and a war with Kamala Harris.” You can be led to believe that you are voting as much as you want, but the reality is that Pennsylvanians, Democrats, Republicans, and Independents, want a return to peace, prosperity, and stability under Trump.”
Fox News Digital interviewed Lehigh Valley Republicans individually and will discuss their ground strategy and sentiments in a separate article.
The Democratic committees of Lehigh and Northampton counties did not respond to requests for interviews.
Fox News Digital's Matteo Cina contributed to this report.
