📉 The largest turnout drop | Morning Newsletter
And the first civil rights walkout
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Democrats may have swept the Pennsylvania big midterm races last month, but low voter turnout — particularly in Philadelphia — could haunt them in the future. Latino parts of the city in particular saw a steep drop.
The latest Inquirer analysis shows this isn’t limited to big cities, and is a statewide issue.
Our lead story seeks to answer how and why Latino voters had the largest turnout dip in the election.
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— Taylor Allen (@TayImanAllen, morningnewsletter@inquirer.com)
Across the state, areas with higher populations of Hispanic and Latino voters saw the greatest turnout drops.
Historically, the turnout in these areas has lagged other parts of the state but this year’s gap was bigger than usual.
Among the findings in an Inquirer analysis of Pennsylvania’s elections:
The larger the Latino population in a precinct, the sharper the turnout decline from 2020 to 2022.
Precincts where Latinos are the largest ethnic group plummeted 47% in votes cast between the 2020 presidential election and the 2022 U.S. Senate election. To compare, the turnout decline across the rest of the state was about 22%.
The drop is particularly clear in Pennsylvania’s heavily Latino midsized cities, such as Allentown, Reading, Lancaster, and York. There, the neighborhoods with the largest Latino populations saw the largest dips.
Notable quote: “The parties and the political class just need to do a much, much better job of engaging Latino voters,” Raphael Collazo, head of the national Latino advocacy organization, UnidosUS Action Fund, said. “And there must be a lot more investment and respect for where Latinos are on the issues and speaking to those issues.”
Continue reading for the complete data breakdown and the push to do earlier and more targeted outreach.
The African Methodist Episcopal Church started in Philadelphia as one of the first Black Christian denominations in the country.
It came after Black Philadelphians staged the first-ever civil rights walkout to worship freely.
Today, A.M.E. church leaders say they’re fighting for basic rights all over again.
The latest installment of A More Perfect Union tells various stories of how A.M.E. has nurtured Black resistance for more than 200 years ranging from a planned slave rebellion to fighting voter suppression.
What you should know today
Pennsylvania House Republicans filed a suit to block Democratic-scheduled special elections.
A Yeadon mom of five has been stuck in Mexico for 18 months in immigration limbo because of a mistake.
To investigate alleged anti-LGBTQ bias, Central Bucks School District is paying former U.S. Attorney Bill McSwain $940 an hour.
West Chester University is joining the movement to combat the teacher shortage with a “grow your own” program to train high schoolers to become teachers. 🔑
How Philly is planning for the 2026 World Cup with lessons from Qatar.
Local coronavirus numbers: Here’s your daily look at the latest COVID-19 data.
🧠Philly Trivia Time đź§
Which Christmas carol originated in the Church of the Holy Trinity on Rittenhouse Square?
A) “O Little Town of Bethlehem”
B) “Silent Night”
C) “O Come All Ye Faithful”
D) “12 Days of Christmas”
Find out if you know the answer.
What we’re ...
🗳️ Considering: What Kyrsten Sinema’s move to leave the Democratic Party and become an independent means for John Fetterman and Senate Democrats.
🎨 Viewing: The “Matisse in the 1930s” exhibit of rarely seen art on display through Jan. 29.
🎤 Remembering: The best Philly concerts of 2022. (Of course, Jazmine Sullivan had to be mentioned.)
🧩 Unscramble the Anagram 🧩
Hint: The Flyers mascot before Gritty
ALTS POSH
Think you know? Send your guess our way at morningnewsletter@inquirer.com. We’ll give a shout-out to a reader at random who answers correctly. Today’s shout-out goes to Tracy Steele, who correctly guessed Matzo Ball as Sunday’s answer.
Photo of the Day
I’m starting my day by making a homemade chai latte. Thanks for beginning yours with The Inquirer.