What's up with Lackawanna County, PA?

[memphis]

I know that Biden is from Scranton and all but still amazing. Almost 100% white. Coal country. Nonetheless, swung toward Obama and gave him 63% of the vote. Not complaining, but WTF? Compare with SW PA, where Dems are in freefall.

[Snowstalker's Last Stand]

[memphis]

Again, it's more than just Biden. Take a look at the 2010 gubernatorial race. Dems only win 4 counties. Dems did best in Philly, of course, but number 2 is Lackawanna. In the 06 gubernatorial race, even before Biden was the veep, Lackawanna was Rendell's best county outside the Philly area. There's something special about Scranton in comparison with every other coal region in the nation. They're still voting like they did 50 years ago. Why?

[Ty440]

Shout out to Scranton!

You've come a long way since the 2008 primaries when Hillary gave Obama a shellacking.

[Gass3268]

Maybe this guy has something to do with it?

[pa2011]

Not sure its realy that surprising. Obama seems to have done pretty well in several majority-white  PA cities with populations of around 100,000.. He also appeared to hold his own vs. his 2008 showing in Erie,  and Harrisburgh, although both of those places have a slightly higher black population than Scranton.  But when you conisder Obama also won majority white working class neigborhoods of Philadelphia and I, assume, Pittsburgh, wonder if voters impression of him has to do  more with urban vs. rural than it does anything else.

[Linus Van Pelt]

There haven't been large-scale coal mines around Scranton for decades. The coal in the Northeastern PA "coal region" is anthracite coal, which was the type used historically for home heating, not for electricity generation, and so the mining industry here was basically killed by the spread of modern furnaces in the decades after WWII. There are a few small strip mines still since anthracite has some other industrial applications and some old buildings here and there have coal furnaces, but these uses aren't so affected by utilities' decisions to switch fuels. Basically Scranton and Wilkes-Barre are more like Butte, MT, where the industry left decades ago leaving behind an economic and environmental mess, and the area's fortunes are no longer tied to the mainstream coal industry.

The coal used in electricity generation is bituminous or sub-bituminous.

[BaldEagle1991]

Maybe this guy has something to do with it?

Every time I hear about Scranton, PA. I think of this guy.