On Tuesday, Pennsylvania will hold a special election for PA-18, a House district that won’t even exist next year. Normally that’s not the kind of election that draws attention, yet on Saturday, President Trump visited to rally Republicans. And when all is said and done, about $12 million will be spent on advertising on the race.
Why all the interest in a district that’s being eliminated as part of court order? Because Pennsylvania 18 is a battleground that shouldn’t be a battleground. It’s a district Donald Trump won by 20 points in 2016 and where the incumbent Republican last ran unopposed, yet polls show the race in single digits. …
There are a few forces behind the sudden shift in Pennsylvania 18. Trump’s slumping approval numbers have more than a little to do with it, of course; Gallup data show his job approval sits at about 42% in the state. And in many ways Lamb, the Democratic challenger, is a perfect fit for this district – a Marine veteran and former prosecutor with an Ivy League education.
But the bigger stories in the 18th may be about perception versus reality and the dangers of gerrymandering – the reason Pennsylvania’s congressional map is being thrown out in the first place. CONT.
Dante Chinni, NBC News
