(The Center Square) – President Donald Trump is set to return to Pennsylvania for the first time this year when he delivers remarks at Mack Trucks in Macungie on Tuesday afternoon.
Republican U.S. Rep. Ryan Mackenzie, who represents the Lehigh Valley, said he is looking forward to being in attendance for the speech in his district.
“We’re looking forward to joining President Trump at Mack Trucks – one of our nation’s most iconic manufacturers,” Mackenzie wrote on social media. “By investing in American workers and supporting domestic manufacturing, President Trump and Republicans in Congress have helped to put the Lehigh Valley and the Poconos at the forefront of our nation’s industrial revitalization.”
U.S. Rep. Dan Meuser, R-9th District, also celebrated the news of Trump returning to Pennsylvania.
“Mack Trucks are a symbol of America’s manufacturing strength. Their Lehigh Valley operations are a pillar of the local economy, employing Pennsylvania workers and driving the nation’s trucking industry. Thank you, President Trump, for supporting American workers,” Meuser wrote on social media. “I look forward to welcoming President Trump back to Pennsylvania, and hope to see everyone there to show our support and appreciation for his leadership in making America great again!”
According to the Philadelphia Inquirer, Trump’s visit will be his fourth appearance in the state since he was sworn into a second term in office.
While Trump captured Pennsylvania’s 19 electoral votes in 2024 over Vice President Kamala Harris, recent polling numbers show a majority of Pennsylvanians do not approve of his job performance.
A Franklin and Marshall College poll, which was released last week, showed Trump with a 29% job approval rating in Pennsylvania, a 10-point drop over more than three months.
The Lehigh Valley is widely regarded as one of the key swing regions of the commonwealth.
“Pennsylvania’s 7th District, nestled in the Lehigh Valley, is a rare true swing seat,” the Cook Political Report wrote earlier this year. “Donald Trump won the district by three points in 2016, lost it by less than a point in 2020, and then won it again by three points last year.”
While Trump was at the top of the ticket in 2024, Mackenzie bested incumbent Democratic Congresswoman Susan Wild by 1 point. Mackenzie’s roughly 4,000-vote victory was the closest Congressional contest in Pennsylvania’s last cycle.
Mackenzie will face Bob Brooks, a firefighters’ union leader, for the seat in November.
A trio of national ratings outlets, the Cook Political Report, Sabato’s Crystal Ball, and Inside Elections describe that race, which could determine control of the U.S. House, as a “toss up.”
