Can the Democrats Win Back Pennsylvania’s Working Class?

“What is the biggest issue for you in your life?” “Cost of living.” “At the grocery store, at the gas pump.” “I can’t afford my insurance.” “It’s outrageous.” “We’re not going to have a middle class.” I’m in Pennsylvania’s 7th Congressional District. It’s one of a handful in the entire country that could decide control of Congress in November. And I’m talking to people here about their lives and what they want the candidates to be focused on. “Hi — I’m a reporter. My name is Sabrina. Can I talk to you?” “OK, so this was $106.” “For like four or five bags. Paying more and bringing out less bags, Sabrina. It’s a real bite out of your income. What do you do? You got to eat, right?” “Does any of this connect to politics for you?” “The war in Iran and everything is what’s jacking up the price of everything right now.” “And can I ask you who you voted for in 2024?” “I voted for President Trump.” “How are you feeling about that? Are you feeling pretty good now or are you feeling —” “Well, I have mixed emotions, Sabrina — yeah I don’t like the war. I don’t like bombings or killing civilians or anything like that. I wish we could stop that somehow. The other thing is, I like to see the prices go down because it’s really killing you.” This is one of only two congressional districts in the state that Republicans flipped in 2024. So this is a big test for the Democratic Party. Can it appeal to voters on cost of living and win them back? In Allentown, Karla Rodriguez worries about the survival of her family’s chicken restaurant. “We’ve never been this bad. Every week the prices are changing. The meat is going up. Ground beef used to be like $18 a tube and now we’re paying $60. You have to find it how you can, and then some people are understanding. Those that are not will go somewhere else.” “It sounds like a hard calculation for you guys.” “It is, yeah, it is. We try to price things where it’s like reasonable, where people can afford it, but where we’re also not losing. But that’s a very thin little gap. The electricity goes up, water goes up, everything goes up. So I mean, we’re just lucky and blessed to still be here and functioning and staying afloat.” “You guys — Democrat or Republican?” “I don’t even know.” “See the color.” “What did you like about Trump?” “I was hoping so much for him to change and change America. Bring it back. He was saying, ‘Oh, things are going to get better.’ And this is — ‘prices are going to go lower.’ Yeah, and look what you go and do. He’s really screwing the poor people, man. If there’s more people like Trump, we’re not going to have a middle class. I want to see president work in a warehouse, driving a forklift for 16 hours, 15, 14 hours, like I used to do. And first six months, he was backing up what he said. After that, I don’t know what happened. He really took us for a ride there. Especially me. I hate getting taken.” “Hopefully something does change. Because if it stays like this for a long time, I don’t know. A lot of people are not going to survive, honestly.” “Does it make you want to vote? “Does it make me want to vote? Yes — for the opposite of what we have now. Because this is — it’s not working.”