Pennsylvania voters have few complaints about Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky’s visit to a munitions plant in the state, a new JL Partners/DailyMail.com poll shows.
Last month, he thanked workers at a plant near Scranton for producing the 155mm artillery shells that helped keep invading Russian troops at bay.
But he traveled on a U.S. Air Force plane, accompanied by top supporters of Kamala Harris and Democrats running in a crucial swing state. Republicans were quick to shout that it was a no-go.
Yet 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 wasn’t. Another 21 percent had no opinion.
Voters in the crucial swing state of Pennsylvania don’t share Republican concerns about Volodymyr Zelensky’s visit to a munitions plant in Scranton
That could be a lesson for Donald Trump and his running mate J.D. 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’ve spent $200 billion on Ukraine. You know what I want Zelensky to do when he comes to the United States of America?
“Thank the people of Pennsylvania and everyone.”
Zelensky visited the plant on September 22. He was accompanied by Governor Josh Shapiro, a Democrat and prominent Harris supporter, and by Representative Matt Cartwright and Senator Bob Casey, both of whom are facing competitive re-election bids.
“It’s in places like this that you can really feel that the democratic world can prevail,” Zelensky wrote on X.
“Thanks to people like these — in Ukraine, in America, and in all partner countries — who work tirelessly to ensure that life is protected.”
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky signs a 155mm artillery shell after touring the Army’s Ammunition Plant in Scranton, Pennsylvania, September 22
This photo, taken by the Ukrainian Presidential Press Service on September 22, 2024, shows Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky arriving for his visit to the Scranton Army Ammunition Plant in Scranton, Pennsylvania, on September 22, 2024.
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.
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 campaigning 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 and military dollars to fly Zelensky in an Air Force C-17 jet.
James Johnson, co-founder of JL Partners, said: “More Pennsylvanians than not feel that Zelensky’s visit to the state was appropriate. That’s a useful corrective to the lazy idea that Ukraine and its leader are unpopular with ordinary Americans.
“But it’s not a campaign tool for Harris.
“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.