Pennsylvania Democrats switch to Republican Party in droves

It has been revealed that voters in Joe Biden's home state of Pennsylvania are ditching the Democratic Party in droves, with thousands trading blue for red and declaring themselves Republicans.

In 2020, Biden only won the commonwealth by around 80,000 votes, meaning any decrease in support there could impact his chances comes 2024.

According to Newsweek, data from the Pennsylvania Department of State shows that in 2023, 35,589 registered Democrats switched over and now identify as Republicans. 

Additionally, 20,908 now former Democrats dropped any party affiliations altogether.

Polling conducted by the Commonwealth Foundation has shown Biden's approval rating among Democrats in Pennsylvania to be six points below the national average of 78 percent.

Throughout 2023, the president failed to prove himself to voters in the state, with his disapproval rating reaching a disastrous low of 61 percent.

Only one-third of registered voters said Biden was their go-to choice for 2024, and nearly half, including 15 percent of Democrats, said there was no way they would cast their ballot for the octogenarian.

Other polls, including one conducted by Emerson College, have shown him in a more favorable light among voters in his home state, however his popularity is still not where he needs it to be to pull out another win.
 

"Current voter registration trends and polling in Pennsylvania should be setting off alarms for President Biden and Democrats at the state and national level, with pocketbook issues remaining the top concern of voters who overwhelmingly feel that things are headed in the wrong direction," the Commonwealth Foundation's senior vice president of public affairs, Erik Telford, said in a statement to Newsweek.

As Fox News reports, the White House announced on Wednesday that Biden would be making a trip to Philadelphia on January 6, the first of what could be a series of visits to Pennsylvania as he seeks to secure the state's 20 electoral college votes.