"The first and most important determinant in this election is white, working-class voters who supported Trump," said G. Terry Madonna, director of the Center for Politics and Public Affairs at Franklin and Marshall College in Lancaster. They are the same voters that Democrats are desperate to reengage with throughout the Rust Belt. This challenging western Pennsylvania race is becoming a test case of whether they can find candidates who can overcome the perception that the party represents urban elites. "These are people who feel the Democratic Party walked away from them and that Trump has taken up their cause," Madonna said.

Source: Los Angeles Times February 22, 2018 11:03 UTC