On the Campaign Trail in Battleground Pennsylvania: Trump and Harris Court Keystone Voters

PENNSYLVANIA – It's election season in all important Pennsylvania and from the big cities to the small towns, both campaigns are crisscrossing the state and spending big bucks. And for good reason. 

Pennsylvania has 19 electoral votes, more than any other battleground state. And, if history is any indication, voters in the Keystone State have picked 10 of the last 12 presidential winners. 

In Philadelphia, we found overwhelming support for Vice President Harris. "I feel she's more for the people, women's rights, and just for the people," one man told us. 

If Harris wants to win here, she has to run up her numbers in the big cities. She also has to build on Democrats' success in the surrounding suburbs. 

Salena Zito with the Washington Examiner lives in Pennsylvania and is very familiar with the state's politics. 

"This race will not be won in Pittsburgh or Philadelphia," Zito told Dana Perino on her podcast, Perino on Politics. "It will be won in the other counties by about 500 extra voters in each county."

And that's why both campaigns are making Pennsylvania's rural communities a priority. 

Western Pennsylvania went for Trump in 2016 and 2020 but this time around, the Harris campaign could see an opportunity. 

In downtown Johnstown, we found more support for Harris than former President Trump. 

"I'm a small business owner, and she's all about helping small businesses," one man told us. 

But if campaign signs on the edges of town – and those lining every road we traveled – mean anything, Trump remains as strong as ever in this part of the state. 

About 25 miles north of Johnstown in Indiana, PA, Trump enthusiasm was on full display at an end of September rally. Thousands came from across western Pennsylvania to support the 45th president. Some even waited upwards of 10 hours in the rain to get inside. 

"Sometimes we don't like the mean tweets and so forth, but his policies are spot on for this country and we need help," one local couple told us. 

One group of women even drove all the way from upstate New York to be there. 

"We love President Trump and I feel like it's now more important than ever to actually show your support for a candidate," one of the women told us. 

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Trump is looking to expand his numbers in these rural counties that he carried with more than 70 percent in 2020. He also needs to chip away at Harris' strength in the big cities and suburbs. 

Other key areas of the state include Northampton and Erie Counties, both bellwethers for the race. 

"I expect a lot of time spent by Trump and Vance in Erie, the most important county, not just in the state but in the entire country," said Zito. "As goes Erie County, so goes the rest of the country."

The x-factor for it all is turnout. 

Polling in Pennsylvania consistently shows about 95 percent of voters already have their minds made up. The goal for both campaigns is to attract just a few from the other camp, in this all important battleground state we'll be watching closely on election night. 

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