Speaker Johnson blitzes Pa. swing districts to boost GOP House hopefuls underperforming Trump
MECHANICSBURG, Pa. — Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) hit the Keystone State last week to boost a pair of swing-district GOP House competitors underperforming former President Donald Trump in the polls — telling The Post he’s confident in these “all-star candidates.”
Johnson’s travels began Thursday in the Lehigh Valley, where longtime state legislator Ryan Mackenzie is taking on Rep. Susan Wild — a third-term House Democrat with a history of controversies.
At a country-club luncheon in critical Northampton County, Johnson described state Rep. Mackenzie as “one of my favorites” while explaining why he’s confident traditionally liberal voting blocs skeptical of Kamala Harris — Hispanic, black and Jewish voters — will move toward the Republican Party this year.
“When they do the math on the other side of this [election], it’s going to show that we had a true, real and I hope lasting demographic shift in the electorate,” Johnson said.
Despite Johnson praising Mackenzie’s “workhorse” approach to office, the GOP challenger is facing an uphill battle against Wild.
A Muhlenberg College poll shows Mackenzie trailing the Democrat by 6 points (51% to 45%) in the pivotal 7th Congressional District. The same poll shows Trump trailing Harris by just 3 points (50% to 47%).
Johnson also stopped Friday in Cumberland County for one of his key members, Rep. Scott Perry.
A sixth-term incumbent, Perry — who was involved in attempts to overturn the 2020 presidential election — is facing an unusually stiff challenge from longtime central Pennsylvania news anchor Janelle Stelson in the state’s 10th Congressional District.
Despite running as a Democrat in the red-leaning district, Stelson has opened up a 9-point lead over Perry (48% to 39%) per a Susquehanna poll released Wednesday. Trump trails Harris by just 5 points (46% to 41%) in the district, the same poll shows.
Asked how his party can keep its House hopefuls competitive while improving its questionable ground game, Johnson told The Post he trusts the Pennsylvania GOP’s “grassroots operations” and the past contributions of his House incumbents will seize the day.
“They’re all great members of Congress that contribute so much, and because of that I think they’re gonna win,” Johnson said of Mackenzie, Perry and others he called “all-star candidates.”
The speaker continued by contrasting that record with Harris’ campaign of “pure fantasy” while pointing to her liberal track record in the Senate.
“Kamala Harris and the Democrats are running a campaign on pure fantasy right now. It’s fantasy over fact,” Johnson said of the veep.
“They’re trying to convince us she’s somebody that everyone knows she isn’t.”