Northeast
Key Pennsylvania region sees ‘waitlist’ for Trump signs; lawmaker says voters ready to reverse Dem policies
PLEASANT CORNER, Pa. – On a clear day, a hiker standing atop Bake Oven Knob, a high point along the Appalachian Trail in Lehigh Furnace, Pa., can see most of state Sen. Jarrett Coleman’s district.
Below the crest of Blue Mountain lies a patchwork of woods and farmsteads in the historically Pennsylvania Dutch communities. On the horizon lies the growing, diverse footprint of Allentown, Pennsylvania’s third-largest city.
Beyond Allentown lies mixed suburbs like Emmaus and Coopersburg, before again giving way to rural communities like Hosensack and Old Zionsville, the latter being the hometown of former three-term Republican Sen. Pat Toomey.
As Pennsylvania’s friendlier economic climate draws transplants from New York and New Jersey, its farmland has been gradually replaced by residential subdivisions and corporate warehousing.
INSIDE DEMOCRATS’ GROUND GAME IN PENNSYLVANIA’S ‘SWING’ LEHIGH VALLEY AREA
Bake Oven Knob, a high point on Blue Mountain in Germansville, Pa., overlooks Lehigh County. (Charles Creitz)
All of those factors combine to create what Allentown Democratic Mayor Matt Tuerk called the “swingiest” area of the perennial bellwether state.
Coleman, a Republican and an airline pilot who entered the political scene as an outspoken conservative member of the Parkland School Board during the height of national controversies, said Republicans are poised to do well in the Lehigh Valley this year.
“We are seeing some of the highest levels of excitement and motivation from folks in the Lehigh Valley. I am hopeful for turnout to exceed 2020 levels,” Coleman said. The GOP underperformed that year in both Lehigh and Northampton counties.
“Although Lehigh County contains a ‘blue’ urban core, life for everyone, regardless of political party, has gotten harder under the current administration. This is prompting even some who have traditionally voted Democrat to cast ballots for GOP candidates.
“The economy, border and community safety remain top concerns for those in the Lehigh Valley.”
Democrats are also aiming to retake the Pennsylvania state Senate, and state Sen. Sharif Street, D-Philadelphia, the state party chairman, said in a recent interview the landmark achievement is within reach.
But, in terms of Harrisburg and Washington, Coleman said, “kitchen table issues” are front of mind in his district, which also includes a slice of the Philadelphia “swing” suburb of Bucks County, and will help the GOP at both levels.
“It’s very clear that the majority of Pennsylvanians — and especially those in the Lehigh Valley — are far worse off than they were four years ago. The GOP has a platform with specific steps to take to improve the lives of those in the Lehigh Valley, Pennsylvania and across the nation.”
Democratic “demonizing” of Trump has not helped his constituents’ pocketbook or public safety via the open border, he added.
Off the side of Bake Oven Knob, adjoining the county lake now named for him, lies the property of Revolution-era farmer Frederick Leaser.
POPULAR PA DEMOCRATIC MAYOR WARNS TRUMP IS ‘OUT-MESSAGING’ HARRIS: I GET MORE FROM STEPHEN COLBERT
As the British approached Philadelphia in 1777, Leaser loaded the Liberty Bell onto his wagon during one of his trips to take produce to market and hauled it home to Lehigh County, preventing the Redcoats from melting it down for ammunition.
Such patriotic, community sentiment remains in that part of the valley, with American flags flying in yards during holidays and local churches and fire halls hosting community dinners, from the Jacksonville oyster supper to the German Groundhog Day spread at the local Grundsau Lodsch.
A few blocks west of the church where Leaser ultimately hid the bell is the headquarters of the Lehigh County Republican Committee.
Chairman Joe Vichot said the party’s presence is ubiquitous at many local events, including the Schnecksville Fair and Allentown Puerto Rican Day Parade.
Schlicher’s Covered Bridge, built in 1882, carries Game Preserve Road across Jordan Creek in Schnecksville, Pa. Donald Trump rallied in the town in 2024. (Fox News Digital/Charles Creitz)
Trump rallied at Schnecksville’s fairgrounds earlier this year, claiming how crucial the area is this cycle.
“We have literature on candidates, and we listen and speak to residents about the issues,” Vichot said, adding his party’s float won third place in the aforementioned parade and that more than a dozen attendees were registered to vote in only a few hours.
The party also registers voters and has made connections with civic leaders in the Jewish, Syrian and Muslim communities, he said.
“The top two issues we hear are the border and the economy,” Vichot said.
“[Voters] want a new direction. They don’t believe the open border policies of Biden/Harris is good for their wallet or safe for their family.”
In neighboring Northampton County, home to Bethlehem, Easton and smaller cities like Nazareth and Wind Gap, conservatives are similarly pounding the pavement to get their messages out.
“Our local party is very involved. We are able to communicate with our voters. We are able to text them, call them, and they are receptive to our requests to … help out in going door to door and making phone calls for us,” Northampton County Republican Committee board member Andrew Azan III said.
Recent construction on Eighth Street in Allentown exposed an old-style campaign sign for the city’s last Republican mayor, Bill Heydt, who served from 1994-2002. (Charles Creitz)
Azan told Fox News Digital there’s a “waitlist” for Trump-Vance signs in his county, which the Republican nominee flipped red in 2016 but lost in 2020.
“That’s a positive sign,” he quipped.
With Bethlehem and Easton’s population of retired steelworkers giving way to new Hispanic and African American residents, the party has adjusted its messaging, but not its principles, to meet the changing diversity of the Lehigh Valley where it stands, Azan added.
In that regard, according to Lehigh Valley Tea Party board member Tom Carroll, locals are more receptive to the conservative platform, and the right wing is “more unified than I’ve ever seen.”
“They are more concerned than ever about losing their country because of the Marxist and socialist policies that are coming out of both Biden and, of course, now Kamala Harris,” said Carroll, whose Tea Party group is the nation’s largest, with 7,000 recorded members.
“She’s going to open the borders, and she’s going to enact the tax policies that she’s talked about, things like [levying] unrealized capital gains. Our voters are educated, and they’re concerned because they know what that will do to the economy.”
The Moravian Star shines on South Mountain above the Philip J. Fahy Memorial Bridge in Bethlehem, Pa. (Fox News Digital/Charles Creitz)
Carroll, an attorney who also helps lead the Bethlehem City GOP, said he’s been involved in politics since the 2010 midterms and recognized Republicans typically lagged behind Democrats in that realm most cycles.
“But there has been such a reach-out to the voters … in Pennsylvania in that there’s a lot of grassroots knocking on doors and meeting people and having a lot of events and surrogates from the various campaigns coming in.
“We believe in President Trump. We want him to get elected. And we realize Pennsylvania is the most important state in the nation.”
Fox News Digital’s Matteo Cina contributed to this report.
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WESTPORT — A two-vehicle crash on Interstate 95 caused a traffic slowdown stretching for miles into Fairfield Friday afternoon, according to state officials.
The crash scene has since been cleared.
Connecticut State Police said the two-car crash was reported near Exit 17 in the southbound lanes at 3:03 p.m.
One driver was taken to the hospital for reported injuries, the agency said.
The crash closed the right lane of the highway, causing cars and trucks to be backed up for miles along I-95 into Fairfield, traffic cameras showed.
This is a developing story and will be updated as more information becomes available.
PORTLAND (WGME) — It’s now a three-way race for the Blaine House.
After more than a week, the ranked choice tabulation was run very early Friday morning, with Hannah Pingree declared the winner for the Democrats, and Bobby Charles the winner for Republicans.
Democratic candidate for governor Hannah Pingree (WGME)
Moving forward, Independent Rick Bennett is also in the governor’s race.
As a moderate, Bennett could draw votes from both parties.
If Friday is any indication, the next four and a half months will be contentious, with the three candidates pointing fingers at each other.
Charles criticized ranked choice voting and says if elected, he will end it.
“Maine voters deserve to know the results of their elections on the day that they cast their vote,” Charles said.
Pingree disagrees, saying election officials made sure every vote counted.
“Maine’s election officials did their job, and they did it right,” Pingree said.
The two nominees traded jabs Friday.
“The Democrats have just nominated an insider,” Charles said. “A deep Augusta insider.”
Republican candidate for governor Bobby Charles (WGME)
It was Charles’ own primary opponents who labeled him a Washington insider.
“I will say it’s ironic that Bobby Charles is talking about positive change,” Pingree said.
Then there’s State Senator and former head of the Maine Republican Party Rick Bennett, running as an Independent.
Charles calls him a Democrat.
Pingree calls him a Republican.
“I think the choice here is clear,” Bennett said. “We have Hannah Pingree, who I respect, but she’s a continuation of the Mills administration. She was in charge of housing policy. We still have a housing crisis. Bobby Charles, as you know, has spent most of his life in the bureaucracy in Washington and then lobbying for corporate interests in Washington. Maine people are tired of a political system that puts the parties first and results second.”
Independent candidate for governor Rick Bennett (WGME)
Charles says he wants to bring integrity to the State House.
“You either want change, integrity, lower taxes, the drug traffickers out of here, the needles out of here, the energy costs down,” Charles said. “No more fraud. I am sick and tired of all the things we’re putting up with. In my view, a betrayal of trust and a betrayal of integrity.”
Pingree says Congressional Republicans and the President are the ones making life difficult for Maine families.
“This is about healthcare that we can afford, whether you’re in a rural hospital in Houlton or urgent care in Portland. It is about Maine’s potential,” Pingree said. “A real future for our kids and the people who are working all across Maine just to get by. It’s also about continuing to stand up to Donald Trump. His attacks, his wars, his economic chaos that is making life harder for every single Mainer every single day.”
As an Independent, Bennett did not have to compete in a primary.
Also, unlike the primary, there is no ranked choice in the general election for state races, so no ranked choice this fall in the governor’s race.
Just as the summer travel season heats up, gas prices are finally dropping, with the national average falling below $4 a gallon.
It marks the first time since March 30 prices are that low, and follows nearly four straight weeks of declines, according to data from AAA.
Massachusetts and the northeast as a whole are still above that average, at $4.09 a gallon, but it’s down sharply just in the past week.
Prices are lower south of Boston, such as in Bristol and Plymouth counties, and some wholesale clubs are selling at $3.60 a gallon.
Mark Schieldrop, spokesperson for AAA Northeast, says the highest price paid at the pump in Massachusetts during the war was $4.50 a gallon.
Schieldrop said the decrease comes on the heels of the U.S. agreement with Iran to end the war and open the Strait of Hormuz, causing crude oil prices to fall.
“We’ve seen a nice steady decline in prices that really started more than three weeks ago,” he said, “Markets anticipated this happening, and that really led to prices beginning to fall.”
Since prices can vary, he recommends drivers shop around and avoid convenient locations.
“You are going to see those higher gas prices right off that highway exit at that first gas station that you see, because they know that they’re going to catch a lot of stray travelers,” he said.
Decreasing gas prices comes as millions of Americans prepare to travel for July 4 in record numbers starting next weekend.
“When prices are on a downward trajectory, that certainly is conducive to encouraging folks to travel,” Schieldrop said. “We do expect strong travel over the July Fourth holiday. And people are still very interested in travel.”
While gas station owners are sometimes accused of price gouging, Schieldrop said most are trying to navigate a volatile market themselves, and are looking to stay competitive when prices drop and they have a surplus.
“They have to be very careful about sort of using a price buffer to ride that volatility so that way you’re able to make money, but you’re not gouging customers, and you’re being competitive in a market because the retail gasoline market is very competitive, ”he said.
Prices a year ago were $3.05 a gallon, but he said we won’t be getting anywhere near those prices this summer.
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