(Joshua Paladino, Headline USA) Pennsylvania Democrats are switching their party affiliation to Republican at about four times the rate that Republicans are becoming Democrats, BizPacReview reported.
The Democrat-to-Republican conversion rate is the highest in a decade, according to Reuters. In total, 14,301 Democrats became Republicans, but only 3,604 Republicans became Democrats.
The two largest counties, Allegheny and Philadelphia, have both seen about 1,500 Democrats become Republicans this year.
In Allegheny, 446 Republicans switched their affiliation to the Democratic Party while 1,565 Democrats became Republicans. In Philadelpia County, which encompasses Philadelphia, 320 Republicans became Democrats and 1,474 Democrats became Republicans.
The numbers—though small in a state with 4 million registered Democrats and 3.4 million registered Republicans—signal an ongoing shift in the months leading up to the 2022 midterm elections.
The GOP’s voter registration push will escalate this summer.
The @GOP nationwide #BidenGasHike voter registration drive continues today in Pennsylvania! 🗳#RedWave2022 https://t.co/BA6gNCsgAK
— PARIS (@PARISDENNARD) April 2, 2022
Beth Jones, a 48-year-old retired Philadelphia police officer, described her decision to switch from the Democrat to the Republican Party in March.
“I just got fed up and just felt like there has to be a better way,” she said.
In some counties, the Democrat-to-Republican registration switch dwarfs the opposite change.
Cambria County, for example, has seen 357 converted Republicans but only 16 converted Democrats. In Elk County, there are 82 new Republicans and five new Democrats.
Pennsylvania will hold elections for the US Senate and House, the governor, and state and local offices.
The Pennsylvania Department of State provided this information in an Excel filed titled
“Voter registration statistics by county” under the tab “Party-to-Party (2022).”
