Wilkes-Barre

Wilkes-Barre is a politically significant town in Northeast Pennsylvania. Having a population of 44,000, Wilkes-Barre is the county seat of Luzerne County, which Donald Trump carried by 58-39% in 2016 despite Obama having won it by 52-47% in 2012. In 2020, native son Joe Biden closed the gap to Trump carrying it by a smaller margin of 57-42%.

The Democrat advantage in voter registration in Luzerne County has narrowed to only 612 voters as of August 2024, and seems likely to flip to a GOP majority prior to the 2024 presidential election.

At its peak in the 1930s and 1940s, Wilkes-Barre's population swelled to more than 86,000 in the 1930s and 40s based on the Vulcan Iron Works (which made railway locomotives) and other manufacturers that have since departed.