In no-suspense presidential primaries, Allegheny County map shows weaknesses for both Trump and Biden

Voters that showed up for low-turnout primaries Tuesday determined the course of several state legislative races and propelled U.S. Rep. Summer Lee toward a second term in Congress. They also may have sent a message to President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump, who had each already secured enough delegates to be nominated for president in the Nov. 5 General Election.

That message: We’re not all on board.

Only about 1 in 4 voters participated Tuesday. Thousands of them sided against their party’s presumptive nominee, backing dropped-out candidates or using the write-in line to signal displeasure with the inevitable.

In Allegheny County, Trump ceded 19% of the vote (more than 12,000 votes) to Nikki Haley, the former U.N. ambassador who remained on the ballot in Pennsylvania despite suspending her campaign in March. Haley received more than 150,000 votes statewide.

Meanwhile Biden shared the ballot with U.S. Rep. Dean Phillips of Minnesota, who suspended his campaign last month, and the president also faced a concerted effort by activists to get voters to write ‘uncommitted’ on their presidential ballot in protest of the administration’s stance on the war in Gaza.

Due to reporting procedures, it’s not yet clear how many write-in votes were cast statewide. But in Allegheny County, there were more than 13,000, or 8% of the vote. Phillips picked up another 7%.

For both candidates, the numbers are eye-catching: Both ceded more votes statewide than the statewide margin in 2020 (Biden won by about 80,000). But local party leaders on both sides are skeptical that voters who dissented last night will cross party lines in the fall.

Haley racked up the most votes in areas that are seen as crucial in the coming contest between Biden and Trump: middle class and affluent suburbs. Places like Fox Chapel, Upper St. Clair, Mt. Lebanon and Edgewood all had comparatively high rates of Trump dissent in Tuesday’s voting.

In the farther reaches of the county, especially southeast and northeast of Pittsburgh, Trump performed more like a typical incumbent president, racking up vote shares of more than 85%.

Sam DeMarco, chair of the Republican Committee of Allegheny County, said he does not think Haley’s showing last night represents cause for alarm for Trump.

“I don’t think any of that matters,” DeMarco said. “Folks who may have wanted to express their displeasure with former President Trump had the opportunity because [Haley] was an option. But I expect many of them to come home to him in November.”

Biden fared well in the same affluent suburbs that pushed back on Trump Tuesday night, with Upper St. Clair, Fox Chapel and Mt. Lebanon voting for him at more than 90%. Resistance to Biden grew in some Mon Valley towns and eastern suburbs, as well as pockets of Pittsburgh’s East End.

Sam Hens-Greco, chair of the Allegheny County Democratic Committee, said the protest votes warrant attention and consideration from the Biden campaign, but are not likely to sink the president in November.

“I think you’re always going to have a certain percentage of folks who are going to be disgruntled or disappointed with what’s going on with the administration,” Hens-Greco said. “That’s coupled this year with a protest vote against how Biden has been dealing with the Israel-Palestine issue. I’m a believer that the political shelf life is very short, that things can change drastically within 30 days.”

Still, Hens-Greco said primary voters are raising issues “that Biden will have to pay attention to,” and that the campaign has begun “laying groundwork” to do so, opening field offices throughout Pennsylvania.

Much of the anti-Biden vote was contained in the 12th Congressional District, where Democratic Rep. Summer Lee won renomination Tuesday in a contentious Democratic primary. Her opponent, Bhavini Patel, spent much of her campaign’s time and money promising full support for President Biden and criticizing Lee for failing to back the president.

In the end, Lee said she voted for Biden Tuesday and the president complimented her during a Pittsburgh visit last week. Biden’s campaign manager for Pennsylvania, Nikki Lu, attended Lee’s election night party Tuesday.

The anti-Biden vote was roughly split in half between votes for Phillips, who has hardly any name recognition in the county, and the write-in line, which was adopted by pro-Palestine organizers as their protest vote of choice.

The map below includes only Democratic primary votes other than for Biden.

While write-in votes made up 55% of non-Biden votes countywide, most municipalities saw more votes for Phillips, whose suspended campaign positioned him as a younger, more electable option than Biden.

Charlie Wolfson is PublicSource’s local government reporter and a Report for America corps member. He can be reached at charlie@publicsource.org.

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