Polling has consistently shown former President Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris locked in a dead heat in Pennsylvania — and the results of a recently-convened focus group shared exclusively with The Daily Wire suggest the Keystone State is still very much up for grabs.
The political analytics firm Cygnal gathered seven undecided Pennsylvania voters from Erie and Northampton Counties, which have gone for the winner of every presidential election since 2008.
While voters largely agreed with Trump’s policy proposals, they were put off by his personality. However, the participants also dinged Harris for “flip-flopping,” and even those who are leaning towards the Democrat said they were put off by her aggressive focus on abortion. With polls showing Trump and Harris essentially tied going into election week, the winner of this key swing state may come down to which candidate can make a direct, relatable pitch to Pennsylvanians.
“They’re both kind of touring with celebrities and making it all about them,” said Tiffany, a Republican between the ages of 30 and 44 who voted for Trump in 2020, but now thinks she’s more likely to vote for Harris. “That’s not resonating, that’s not fixing anything, that’s not discussing the issues. That’s just making it about yourself.”
The candidates seem to understand what’s at stake: both Trump and Harris are scheduled to spend the last day before the election in Pittsburgh.
Like voters across the country, the focus group participants were largely focused on the economy. Mike, an independent between the ages of 45 and 54 who voted for a third-party candidate in 2020, spoke for much of the group when he talked about the impact of inflation.
“Today, I stopped at the grocery store. I needed two packs of batteries, some hotdog buns, and something else, and it was like $40 bucks,” Mike said. “We can’t sustain this level, especially when I haven’t seen a pay increase in four years.”
Inflation was the dominant theme of the conversation: participants mentioned rising costs more than 40 times in the two-hour session.
“What matters to me is when I go to the grocery store, I can’t afford to buy groceries for my family,” said Rachel, a Democrat between the ages of 30 and 44 who voted for Biden in 2020.
“I have to pull from my savings. You step into a grocery store now and your bill’s already at $70 no matter what you pick up. That’s what matters to me.”
For all the concern about inflation, however, none of the voters thought much of Harris’s pledge to impose price controls on groceries and other goods.
Even those currently leaning toward Harris said they were very concerned about excessive government spending and the growing national debt. These voters say they would like to see less American wealth going overseas, an issue Trump has been hammering.
“We need to find a way to get rid of our debt and pay it down, such as calling in all the loans we’ve given to foreign nations recently,” Tiffany said.
One thing that isn’t likely to solidify Tiffany’s vote for Harris: abortion.
Though abortion is a top issue for pro-choice women like Tiffany, she said that she finds some of Harris’ abortion ads offensive.
“I don’t like it being used as a scare tactic,” she said. “Some of these commercials are like, as a woman, I should want to vote for a pro-choice candidate because I could get raped and need an abortion. I find that a little inappropriate for campaigning.”
Jamie, a Republican between the ages of 45 and 54 who voted for Trump in 2020 but is currently undecided, said she was also bothered by the Democrat’s focus on abortion.
“We have one candidate who believes in restrictions, and we have one candidate that thinks abortion should be given to a woman up until the point of the baby being actually born,” Jamie said. “It is a big reason why I don’t like Kamala Harris.”
If one thing was alienating voters from Trump, it was his personality. Asked to describe what animal comes to mind when they think of the former president, most offered unflattering comparisons.
Rachel said “peacock,” because “everything he does is based on how it makes him look.”
“He has to look good,” she said. “So whether he perpetuates lies, whether he has to make things up, as long as it makes him look good, then that’s what’s going to be said.”
Another said Trump brings to mind an ape because he’s strong but ham-fisted, while another described him as a bull in a china shop.
A fourth said Trump was like “a pigeon because a lot of times he just s***s on everything.”
Several participants worry that Trump’s style could hurt the United States on the world stage. When asked what advice they would give Trump to win their vote, several offered some variation of “show more humility.”
But voters aren’t necessarily enamored with Harris, either. Multiple participants said the vice president reminds them of a “chameleon,” perhaps the worst label a political candidate can get.
“Stop being so flip-floppy, so that people actually know where you stand on issues, and you can trust that you’re going to do what you say you’re going to do,” said Rachel, one of the voters leaning to Harris.
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