He did it
2016 will be remembered for years to come, mainly because of one man. That, of course, is Donald Trump, who confounded all the political analysts by winning the Republican presidential nomination and then knocking off Hillary Clinton in one of the biggest presidential election upsets in the history of the country.
Trump offended many with some of his comments, but others loved him for steering clear of political correctness and calling the shots as he saw them. In the end, his supporters stood by him and voted him into office, stunning the pollsters who predicted that Clinton would win the race.
Nowhere was that Trump support in evidence more than here in Greene, Fayette, Washington and Westmoreland counties. Trump’s comments about bringing back the steel mills and coal mines resonated with local residents. Trump cemented that support by making a campaign stop in Monessen, the first time any presidential candidate had stopped by there in ages.
After largely supporting Democratic presidential candidates since the days of Franklin Roosevelt in the early 1930s, voters in all our four counties backed Republican presidential candidates John McCain in 2008 and Mitt Romney in 2012. However, their victories were still somewhat close, with Romney only winning this area by 58,995 votes.
But that all changed this November as Trump steamrolled through Greene, Fayette, Washington and Westmoreland counties trampling Clinton by a margin of 104,469 votes, which was 45,474 more votes than Romney tallied here.
Certainly, Trump’s margin of victory here was crucial as he defeated Clinton by 44,292 votes across the commonwealth. If Trump had only done as well as Romney did here, he would have lost Pennsylvania and its crucial 20 votes in the Electoral College.
Meanwhile, the Trump tide helped local Republicans running for the state Legislature, as GOP candidates won four of five races in our four-county area. Republican Matt Dowling upset Democrat incumbent Tim Mahoney in the 51st Legislative District while GOP newcomers, Bud Cook and Justin Walsh, won races in the Mon Valley’s 49th and 58th legislative districts, respectively. They will replace long-time Democratic incumbents Pete Daley and Ted Harhai who decided not to seek re-election. Republican incumbent Ryan Warner turned back Democratic challenger James Mari Township in the 52nd Legislative District.
The only Democrat to win was Pam Snyder of Jefferson, Greene County, who was re-elected to her seat in the 50th Legislative District.
With four local members in the state House of Representatives and two local members in the state Senate, the Republican Party has reversed decades of domination by the Democratic Party. Republicans also control the area’s seat in Congress with Bill Shuster winning another term in November.
However, it remains to be seen if the support given by local voters to Republican candidates is something that’s temporary or more permanent. Will it be a blip on the radar screen or a true realignment of local politics? Nobody knows for sure, but Republicans from Trump on down do have the opportunity to reshape local politics for years. However as Democrats have learned the hard way, the hardest part of politics is governing and actually doing something to improve the lives of the residents here. Only time will tell if the Republicans can actually revive the economy of this area and make it great again.