Red or Blue? The states deciding the 2024 US presidential election: Pennsylvania.

The U.S. election is coming up, with voters in all 50 states deciding who to elect as the next president.

But most states are considered "safe", either solidly Republican or Democratic, and both Kamala Harris and Donald Trump have not spent time or money trying to persuade the voters there.

Instead both candidates are gunning for the main prize — seven "swing" states that will determine the election, and the presidency.

Pennsylvania's early history

The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, known as PA or the Keystone State, is older than America itself.

In 1681, English settler William Penn was granted a land charter in America by King Charles II.

Penn (a Quaker by religion) established a government with two things that would be emulated by later settlements; freedom of religion and a provincial council.

During the American Revolution, Pennsylvania was the site of major events in the nation's history, such as George Washington crossing the Delaware River and the adoption of the Declaration of Independence at Philadelphia Hall.

The city of Philadelphia also served as the nation's capital until the city of Washington DC was constructed.

The American Civil War saw many famous battles take place within the state, including the Battle of Gettysburg, which President Abraham Lincoln later visited and delivered his famous Gettysburg Address.

After the World Wars, Pennsylvania emerged as an industrial powerhouse, with the city of Pittsburgh renowned for its manufacture of steel.

Today, Pennsylvania is the fifth-largest state in the U.S., with just over 13 million people as of the 2020 census.

Pennsylvania's political history

Due to its size and diverse economic base, Pennsylvania emerged as an influential swing state in American politics.

After 1948, when Harry Truman lost the state but still beat Thomas Dewey in an upset victory, Pennsylvania has swung either Republican or Democratic and backed the eventual winner.

The sole exception was 1968, where Richard Nixon won despite losing the state.

From 2000 onwards, Pennsylvania became more reliably Democratic.

It went for both Al Gore and John Kerry, despite their losses to George W Bush, and then backed Barack Obama twice.

In 2016, Donald Trump's shock victory in Pennsylvania was a crucial part of his triumph over Hillary Clinton, along with fellow Midwestern states of Michigan and Wisconsin that the media dubbed the "Blue Wall".

However, Pennsylvania was the "tipping point" state in the dramatic 2020 election, when the votes were counted over a few days and eventually handed the presidency to Joe Biden.

The Election of 2024

With both Trump and Kamala Harris (as part of Biden's 2020 ticket) having won Pennsylvania, it has once again become a true swing state and may very well decide the fate of the 2024 election.

Biden, who was born in Scranton, Pennsylvania, had a personal connection to the state but his replacement Harris does not, raising questions if the Democrats can keep it in the blue column.

A couple of events have grabbed media attention.

Back-and-forth over fracking

Harris's previous comments over fracking came under scrutiny.

Fracking, the process by which high pressure water is used to extract oil and natural gas from shale rock, is a major part of Pennsylvania's energy industry.

Forbes stated that fracking is involved in almost 60 per cent of the state's energy supply and there are 100,000 jobs directly linked to the gas industry.

However, there are environmental concerns linked to the process.

While she was still a senator in 2019, Harris said she would ban fracking.

But she later said her views changed when she joined Biden's ticket in 2020.

The Trump campaign seized upon this opportunity to criticise Harris for being "disingenuous", while Trump himself said that despite Harris's reversal, she would still try and ban fracking.

Trump assassination attempt

Pennsylvania was also the site of an assassination attempt on Trump in July 2024, which left one rally attendee dead and two others critically injured.

The shooter was also killed during the incident by the Secret Service, while Trump himself escaped with a minor injury to his ear.

The failed assassination sent shockwaves throughout the world, with Trump seemingly on course to beat Joe Biden before the president announced he would no longer be running.

Top image via Kamala Harris and Donald Trump Facebook and Canva.