This Swing-State Republican Keeps Distancing Himself From Trump. It May Not Save Him in the Midterms.

Mary Ryan is a registered Republican, but she has never voted for President Donald Trump. She lives in the suburbs of Philadelphia and works as a medical writer. For years, she supported her local congressman, Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick, even though she didn't like Trump. But this year, she says she has had enough — and she plans to vote for Fitzpatrick's Democratic opponent instead.

Fitzpatrick is a Republican who represents Pennsylvania's 1st Congressional District. He has served five terms in Congress, which means voters have chosen him five times. His district is considered a swing district, meaning it doesn't lean strongly toward either party. In fact, Democrat Kamala Harris won that same district in the most recent presidential race, yet Fitzpatrick still held his seat by a wide margin.

Fitzpatrick has worked hard to show voters he doesn't always agree with President Trump. He voted against Trump's tariffs, which are taxes on goods from other countries. He also voted against Trump's big tax bill and against giving Trump the power to start a war with Iran without asking Congress first. He even skipped a Republican midterm event that Trump held in Dallas.

Fitzpatrick's Democratic opponent is Bob Harvie. Harvie has been elected to a county government job twice and used to be a social studies teacher. He says he decided to run because he worries about people losing trust in the government and in each other. He also says his deep roots in the district make him a stronger challenger than Democrats who ran against Fitzpatrick in the past.

Fitzpatrick has won his races by large margins before. In 2024, he won by 13 percentage points even as Harris won the district overall. Political expert Robert Speel compared Democrats' repeated attempts to beat Fitzpatrick to the cartoon character Charlie Brown trying to kick a football. 'Every two years Democrats in Washington label Congressman Fitzpatrick as vulnerable. Every two years he wins anyway,' Speel said.

Not every voter in the district is ready to abandon Fitzpatrick. Jim Rachau, a 45-year-old photographer from Doylestown, plans to vote for Fitzpatrick again. Rachau is not happy about the war or the economy, but he trusts Fitzpatrick because of his past work as an FBI agent. 'You would think serving for the public good, he would have their best interest at heart,' Rachau said.

Fitzpatrick has not been afraid to disagree with Trump publicly. In April, he criticized the president after Trump called Pope Leo XIV 'weak.' Fitzpatrick also co-hosts a podcast with a Democratic congressman and says people are 'sick and tired of the noise' from politicians. He is active in his community, visiting striking workers, attending a church picnic, and stopping by a community college event.

The campaign has gotten negative. Fitzpatrick's side has already spent nearly $5 million on the race, much of it on attack ads against Harvie. Some ads claim Harvie is under FBI investigation, but Harvie denies this and has filed a lawsuit saying the ads are false. His lawyers say he was only called as a witness in a case years ago and has never been charged with anything.

The two candidates have not agreed to debate each other. They appeared at the same September 11 memorial event but stood on opposite sides of the stage and did not seem to speak. Voter Jean Dolan believes Fitzpatrick is not independent enough from Republican leaders, saying he needs to 'serve everyone in your district,' even those who disagree with his party.

Mary Ryan is still thinking about what to do, but she leans strongly toward voting against Fitzpatrick. She believes Republican members of Congress feel they cannot go against Trump or they will lose their jobs. But she also admitted that going along with Trump might not save them. 'They might not get reelected anyway,' she said.