Pennsylvania voters don’t have too many complaints about Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky’s visit to a munitions factory in the state, a new JL Partners/DailyMail.com poll shows.
Last month, he thanked workers at a factory near Scranton for producing the 155mm artillery shells that helped keep invading Russian forces at bay.
However, he traveled on a U.S. Air Force plane and was accompanied by top supporters of Kamala Harris and Democrats running for re-election in a critical swing state. Republicans were quick to shout foul.
Still, a poll of 500 likely voters found that most Pennsylvanians don’t share their concerns.
About 42 percent said the visit was appropriate, while 37 percent said it was not. Another 21 percent had no opinion.
Voters in the critical swing state of Pennsylvania do not share Republican concerns about Volodymyr Zelensky’s visit to a munitions factory in Scranton
That could be a lesson for Donald Trump and his running mate JD Vance as they tailor their message to a state that will have a huge impact on the outcome of the presidential election.
The Trump wing of the Republican Party has made it clear that it has little interest in sending money and weapons to Ukraine.
And Vance, for example, went after Zelensky at an event in Newtown, Pennsylvania.
“He came to campaign with the Democratic leaders of this country,” he said.
“We spent $200 billion on Ukraine. You know what I would like Zelensky to do when he comes to the United States of America?
“Thank the people of Pennsylvania and everyone else.”
Zelensky visited the factory on September 22. He was joined by state Gov. Josh Shapiro, a Democrat and high-profile Harris booster, as well as Rep. Matt Cartwright and Sen. Bob Casey, both of whom face competitive reelection fights.
“It is in places like this where you can truly feel that the democratic world can triumph,” Zelensky wrote on X.
“Thanks to people like these – in Ukraine, in America and in all partner countries – who work tirelessly to ensure life is protected.”
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky signs a 155mm artillery shell after touring the Scranton Army ammunition factory on September 22 in Pennsylvania
This handout photo taken by the Ukrainian Presidential Press Service on September 22, 2024, shows the President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelensky, arriving for his visit to the Scranton Army Ammunition Plant in Scranton, Pennsylvania, on September 22, 2024.
But it angered Republicans, including House Speaker Mike Johnson, who accused him of electioneering with Democrats.
“The tour was clearly a partisan campaign event designed to benefit Democrats and is clearly election interference,” he wrote in a public letter.
Republicans also criticized the Biden administration for using taxpayer money and military resources to fly Zelensky on an Air Force C-17 jet.
James Johnson, co-founder of JL Partners, said, “The opinion of more Pennsylvanians than not is that Zelensky’s visit to the state was appropriate. That’s a useful corrective to the lazy idea that Ukraine and its leader are not liked by ordinary Americans.
“However, it is not a campaign asset for Harris.
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“When we ask voters in the Keystone State who they trust most on global conflict, their answer is resoundingly Donald Trump. The more Ukraine and foreign issues are in the news, the better it is for Trump — even if voters sympathize with Zelensky’s fate.”
Pennsylvania likely holds the key in the presidential election.
And our poll shows that the race couldn’t be more exciting. If the election were held tomorrow, Donald Trump and Kamala Harris would win the same share of the vote: 47 percent each.
Both campaigns ensure that money and people flow into the state during the last, hectic weeks before November 5.