Pennsylvania 78th State House District, Pennsylvania: Populist district. In 2024, voted R+69%. Republican peak: R+69 in 2024.
Key facts
- 2024 presidential margin
- R+69MIT Election Lab
- Political archetype
- PopulistAkashic typology
- Population
- 62,0212024 5-year
- Median household income
- $61,3612024 5-year
- White (non-Hispanic)
- 95.1%2024 5-year
- Black
- 0.8%2024 5-year
- Hispanic / Latino
- 1.4%2024 5-year
- Peak Democratic margin
- D+25 in 1912MIT Election Lab
- Peak Republican margin
- R+69 in 2020MIT Election Lab
Constituent county margins for State House District 78, PAOne cell per constituent county, colored by 2024 presidential margin from deep red (Republican) through neutral to deep blue (Democratic), ordered bluest first.
R+60D+60
One cell per constituent county. Ordered by 2024 D-vs-R margin (bluest first). Hover for county-level numbers.
38 presidential elections
| Year | Won | Margin | Democratic | Republican | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| R | 5,436 | 30,686 | 36,386 | ||
| R | 5,450 | 29,838 | 35,538 | ||
| R | 4,555 | 25,237 | 30,486 | ||
| R | 6,096 | 21,508 | 27,961 | ||
| R | 7,632 | 20,758 | 28,738 | ||
| R | 7,488 | 21,370 | 28,939 | ||
| R | 6,896 | 17,345 | 24,711 | ||
| R | 7,571 | 12,724 | 22,986 | ||
| R | 7,425 | 11,770 | 23,831 | ||
| R | 7,283 | 14,204 | 21,607 | ||
| R | 6,730 | 16,333 | 23,108 | ||
| R | 6,290 | 13,665 | 20,633 | ||
| R | 8,386 | 11,570 | 20,182 | ||
| R | 5,026 | 13,753 | 19,128 | ||
| R | 5,897 | 12,677 | 20,483 | ||
| D | 11,341 | 9,711 | 21,076 | ||
| R | 7,699 | 15,234 | 22,974 | ||
| R | 7,854 | 13,788 | 21,661 | ||
| R | 6,970 | 11,542 | 18,586 | ||
| R | 5,533 | 7,785 | 13,349 | ||
| R | 6,930 | 10,783 | 17,796 | ||
| R | 9,366 | 10,968 | 20,389 | ||
| D | 11,364 | 11,095 | 22,703 | ||
| R | 6,993 | 8,004 | 15,517 | ||
| R | 3,019 | 11,777 | 15,022 | ||
| R | 3,521 | 7,311 | 12,401 | ||
| R | 3,824 | 7,089 | 11,975 | ||
| R | 4,460 | 4,529 | 9,362 | ||
| O | 3,773 | 1,456 | 9,407 | ||
| R | 4,292 | 5,756 | 10,527 | ||
| R | 4,177 | 6,462 | 11,036 | ||
| R | 4,667 | 5,827 | 10,659 | ||
| R | 4,849 | 6,064 | 11,075 | ||
| R | 4,892 | 5,217 | 10,247 | ||
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Demographics
Race, ethnicity, and ancestry
Click any group to see the ancestries typically reported within it.
German
30.3%
Irish
10.6%
English
10.3%
American
8.0%
Italian
2.9%
French
2.3%
Polish
1.5%
Source · American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2024 release. Hispanic/Latino is an ethnicity that overlaps the race categories, so these shares can total more than 100%. Ancestry is a self-reported, multiple-response item; ancestry percentages do not sum to the parent race percentage.
Age distribution by sex
Median age: 47.2 in this county, 39.1 nationally
Male
Age
Female
85+
75–84
65–74
55–64
45–54
35–44
25–34
18–24
5–17
<5
Source · American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2024 release.
Median household income
2024 inflation-adjusted dollars
$61,361
State House District 78 ranks near the middle of US counties.
State House District 78$61,361
Pennsylvania$77,971
United States$80,734
Source · American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2024 release.
Poverty rate
All persons below federal poverty line
11.5%
Child poverty is below the national average.
Children under 1814.4%
Working age (18–64)10.6%
Seniors (65+)11.8%
Source · American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2024 release.
Language at home
Population aged 5 and older
97.5%
speak English only
Other Indo-European1.6%
Spanish0.7%
Asian & Pacific Islander0.2%
Other languages0.1%
Source · ACS 5-year estimates, 2024.
Religious adherents
Adherents per capita by tradition
Source · 2020 US Religion Census. Remaining 62.7% of residents not counted as adherents by any reporting body.
District 78 recorded an R+69.5 presidential margin in 2024, placing it among the state's most one-sided legislative seats and reflecting the deep rural realignment that has reshaped Pennsylvania's interior over the past decade.
The Democratic margin in Pennsylvania 78th State House District peaked at twenty-five points in 1912. By 1968 the district had flipped, voting Republican for the first time in many years. The 2024 margin was sixty-nine points, the most Republican-leaning result in the district's modern history.
The economic context is the key. The median household income of $61,361 sits well below state and national norms, and 12% of residents live below the federal poverty line. The shift here is part of a broader realignment of working-class places across the country.
Compare two places, side by side
Twelve curated comparisons line up election history, demographics, and the divergence story for two places at a glance. Browse all comparisons →
Cite this page
All citations released under CC BY 4.0. Attribution: Akashic Intelligence.
State House District 78, Pennsylvania. Akashic. https://akashic.app/sld-lower/42078/. Accessed May 20, 2026. License: CC BY 4.0.
License: CC BY 4.0
Frequently asked questions
How did State House District 78, Pennsylvania vote in 2024?
In 2024, State House District 78, Pennsylvania voted Republican by 69.4 points (R+69), carried by the Republican candidate. Out of 36,386 votes cast, 5,436 went Democratic and 30,686 went Republican.
What is State House District 78, Pennsylvania's political archetype?
Akashic classifies State House District 78, Pennsylvania as a "Populist" district based on its long-arc presidential voting pattern. Across 38 elections in the dataset, the district has voted Democratic 2 times, Republican 31 times, and other 1 times.
When did State House District 78, Pennsylvania last vote Democratic?
The most recent presidential election in which State House District 78, Pennsylvania voted Democratic was 1964.
How many people live in State House District 78, Pennsylvania?
State House District 78, Pennsylvania has a population of 62,021 according to the 2024 American Community Survey 5-year estimates from the US Census Bureau.
What is the median household income in State House District 78, Pennsylvania?
Median household income in State House District 78, Pennsylvania is $61,361 — below the national median of $80,734. The Pennsylvania state median is $77,971.
What is the political history of State House District 78, Pennsylvania?
Akashic tracks 38 presidential elections in State House District 78, Pennsylvania from 1876 to 2024. Of those, 2 went Democratic and 31 went Republican. The district's archetype — "Populist" — captures the overall trajectory of that voting record.