80-Year-Old Swing State Democrat Didn’t Vote in Past Six Elections

The shock win followed a national trend, as people across the country voted blue on Election Day, securing major wins in New York City, New Jersey, Virginia, and Georgia. The massive turnout—and the pro-Democrat results—have been interpreted as a nationwide reaction to Donald Trump’s second-term policies.

In Beaver County, local anti-Republican sentiment was just strong enough to oust Republican incumbent Thomas Todd Hamilton by a margin of 13 votes. In the end, Kretchmar received 917 votes compared to Hamilton’s 904. Incredibly, the mayor before Hamilton—Robert Linn—served a whopping 58 years in office, first entering City Hall in 1946.

It remains to be seen whether Beaver County’s twisting political perspectives could be a bellwether for the larger state of Pennsylvania, which has become an unpredictable swing state in presidential elections since Trump won over its electorate in 2016.