GEOFF BENNETT: Tomorrow night's
presidential debate between Donald Trump and Kamala Harris will take place
in Philadelphia in a state that could prove to be the deciding factor
in the race for the White House. Lisa Desjardins takes us inside one Pennsylvania
county with a track record of picking the winner, a place both parties think could signal how
the state and possibly the country could vote. LISA DESJARDINS: Drive down a gravel road
just past a cornfield and you will find how Vice President Harris
plans to win the election. VANESSA BOULETTE, Harris Organizer:
If someone says they are concerned about reproductive health care, you want to
talk about Kamala Harris' opinions on that. LISA DESJARDINS: In swing Northampton county,
Pennsylvania, Democratic volunteers meet weekly to strategize, before hitting the streets
and pushing every way they can for Harris. VANESSA BOULETTE: Hello, my name is Vanessa
and I'm a volunteer for the Harris campaign. There's a lot of enthusiasm for since Kamala
Harris got into the race for getting out and voting for her. But I think people are
very concerned. It's such a close race. MAN: Help people get involved, lord,
and help people work to save America. LISA DESJARDINS: Several miles
away in the in Northampton County, Republicans too are gathering for voter outreach. In one room, we see the
span of the MAGA coalition, some focused on Trump as a strong leader,
at least two others on conspiracies. Among the things this woman told us is that
Joe Biden is dead, replaced by a fake. For Rodney Nace, it is about Trump's
track record. He voted for Barack Obama once, but is now all in on Donald Trump. RODNEY NACE, Trump Supporter: He's
very, very outspoken. I could be, too, if I get wound up. But he gets the
job done. And when he gets the job done, it was always for the betterment of the country. LISA DESJARDINS: Of the 3,000 counties in
the country, just 25 of them voted for the winner in the last four elections.
Of the tiny handful in swing states, Northampton County was the closest in 2020.
They voted for Joe Biden by less than one point. Lifelong resident Carlos Diaz grew up with
the lights of the Bethlehem steel plant. CARLOS DIAZ, Pennsylvania Resident: Every night,
blue flames would shoot out of that. And you would hear the clanging and banging and it was
always like chh, chh, chh, that never stopped. LISA DESJARDINS: That was
your childhood all the time. CARLOS DIAZ: That was the
soundtrack to my childhood for sure. LISA DESJARDINS: That was in the '80s,
but, within years, the plant shut down, snuffing out thousands of jobs that
were the town's economic lifeline. Did those jobs ever come back? CARLOS DIAZ: No. They shifted
a portion to Maryland, but the majority were lost and gone for good. LISA DESJARDINS: Carlos is a truck driver and a
lifelong Democrat voting for Harris. Like her, he opposes abortion bans and as a
father of a child with autism. He was appalled at attacks on V.P. nominee Tim
Walz's son, who has a non-verbal learning disorder. Perhaps most of all, Carlos
sees the working class at stake. CARLOS DIAZ: These people who are not part
of the 1 percent, who are not corporations, why they would think its in their economic self-interest to vote Republican
is beyond me. I cannot comprehend that. Joe Biden went to a union picket
line. How amazing was that, a sitting president on a union picket
line? That just made my heart swell. LISA DESJARDINS: Northampton has an
industrial draw. It is a key corridor between major East Coast cities. But it is
also a compact version of the whole state, with urban areas like Bethlehem, lush
rural farms, and middle-class suburbs, like in Easton, where Jackie Crowell
today is watching her grandson. A retired schoolteacher, she is
centered on family and her faith. JACKIE CROWELL, Pennsylvania Resident:
I am voting for Donald Trump. It's policy over personality for me. I'm a
conservative Christian. And he aligns, the party aligns much more with my ideals
as a Christian, as the Democratic Party. LISA DESJARDINS: She is Republican and
anti-abortion and applauds Trump for his role in overturning Roe v. The
matriarch of a family of wrestlers, she opposes transgender
women playing women's sports. JACKIE CROWELL: Oh, there's my great-grandparents. LISA DESJARDINS: These are wonderful. Jackie's politics are also rooted in family, immigrant grandparents from
Germany and Italy, once Democrats. JACKIE CROWELL: My grandmother used to say when
I was a little girl, Democrats are for the poor., Republicans are for the rich. If she were
alive today, she would be Republican, no question about it, because the Democrat Party
of her day is not the Democrat Party today. LISA DESJARDINS: Jackie blames Democrats and
Harris for high prices, from food to homes, and what she sees as a lower work ethic. JACKIE CROWELL: I'm very work hard,
don't expect the government to take care of you. Do what you have to do for
your family. Doesn't mean you're going to be millionaires, but you will have
a comfortable living if you work hard. LISA DESJARDINS: That idea unifies this swing
county, hard work. But the divide is everywhere, like at the popular Fegley's Brew pub. At the bar,
a veteran for Trump is struggling in this economy. JIMMY PEARCE, Trump Supporter: I haven't been able
to finance a House because the rates are too high. LISA DESJARDINS: A few feet away, a group of hard no's on Trump see
a threat to rights and democracy. LYDIA REMINSKY, Harris Supporter: I generally just do not think that Mr. Trump
could lead the country at all. LISA DESJARDINS: One thing we noticed, we did not find any Democrats for Trump.
But we did meet Republicans against him. What don't you like about Trump? DOLORES COLE, Republican Voter: Where do I start? LISA DESJARDINS: Like Dolores Cole. We met her at
that Republican event. She's been in the party 62 years and does not mince words about Trump, noting
he is a convicted felon, or about Trump voters. DOLORES COLE: They just worship their God, who is Trump. And that's it. He can
do no wrong even though he does. So they don't think for themselves. I am
thinking for myself and for my country. LISA DESJARDINS: Love for country is evident here, along with strong divide over what that means.
Like so much else in Northampton county, who wins here likely will come down
to one thing, who works the hardest. For the "PBS News Hour," I'm Lisa Desjardins
in Northampton County, Pennsylvania.