According to the swing maps, every county in this area trended to the GOP in 2004. I was expecting the Heinz name to help Kerry out over here.
Reasons why?
I've already run through this all in detail, so forgive me if I don't give a super thorough break down.
The primary reason is not social issues,
per se. Rather, what I call "New Deal Dye-off" is the primary cause. In short, those here who felt so wedded to the Democrats because of economic issues are either dying off, or the Dems have failed to convince them that they still care about their issues. The younger generations, here, are far more willing to vote GOP than their parents or grandparents.
Also, the economy around the Pittsburgh has changed quite a bit. Instead of being heavy industry based, it is now mostly based on tech industries. Most young people in the Pittsburgh area have never even seen a functioning steel mill. The atmospherein Western PA is more professional than it once was, but there is still a strong working class undertone. This seems to combine to create a GOP trend.
