‘A whole bunch of financial mess’: Affordability feels out of reach in PA district crucial to Trump
By John King, CNN
Bethlehem, Pa. (CNN) — Jenique Jones is “super busy” these days.
Because of what she does — and where she lives — that is perilous news for President Donald Trump and Republican control of Washington.
“My business assists people in repairing their credit,” Jones said in an interview at the Bethlehem office of Lehigh Valley Credit Restoration. “Managing their finances and basically being financially organized.”
She has been super busy, Jones told us, because “times are tough.”
“Everything is going up except the wages here. This is the Lehigh Valley, or the hub between Philadelphia and New York, and they are raising prices and the locals really can’t afford to keep up.”
Bethlehem is synonymous with blue-collar America, and because of the area’s voting history it is a laboratory for testing the national mood. Right now, plenty of people are living paycheck to paycheck; more and more are asking to meet with Jones because of an affordability crisis.
They tell her a range of stories. “My husband lost all of his overtime,” is one Jones often hears. Or also: “My kids’ daycare went up. Can’t afford the cost of food. Using credit cards for everyday expenses. No money left after the bills are paid.”
“Pretty much just a whole bunch of financial mess,” she says.
Jones is a three-time Trump voter. She still believes he is more qualified than Kamala Harris, his Democratic opponent in the last election.
But now, she is blunt in saying he has simply failed to keep his 2024 campaign pledge to make life more affordable.
“I’m very let down by that. Very, very let down because it’s — I feel like it’s only gotten worse,” she said.
The numbers back Jones up. The unemployment rate in the Lehigh Valley is up since Trump returned to the White House. Pennsylvania grocery costs are up 8.2% in the past year, well above the national average of 5%. And rent for a one-bedroom apartment in Bethlehem averages $1,900 a month, up just shy of 6% from a year ago.
“People are just struggling to pay basic needs,” Jones said. “People can’t afford everyday life. The average grocery shopping, even for myself, let’s say $150 a week is now $250 a week.”
Anger over affordability pressures helped Trump win Pennsylvania and all the swing states in November 2024. This November, it was again the driving issue as Democrats made big gains — and by big margins in off-cycle elections such as in the Virginia and New Jersey governors’ races and the New York mayoral race.
High prices in a key district
Bethlehem will be central to testing whether the same dynamics play out in the 2026 midterms, when Democrats are looking to capture the House majority and create a roadblock to the Trump agenda.
It sits in Pennsylvania’s bellwether Northampton County, a place known for picking political winners and a county we visited several times during our 2024 travels for our All Over the Map project, looking at the election through the eyes and experiences of voters.
The winner in Northampton has won statewide and nationally in the past five presidential elections — and in 29 of 32 dating back to 1900. Plus, Trump’s 2024 win helped flip Pennsylvania’s 7th Congressional District from blue to red, but by just 4,000 votes. It is a top 2026 Democratic target.
Ronald Corales knew well before Election Day 2024 that Trump was running strong in the Lehigh Valley, and stronger in the Latino community than in 2016 or 2020.
Corales owns three Gentlemen’s Barber locations in the area, and politics is a constant topic of conversation. These days, clients grumble a lot about prices, and some of them say Trump has failed to make life more affordable, he said.
Corales is also a three-time Trump voter. He was named after Ronald Reagan, because his Peruvian immigrant parents were so proud to come to the United States and Reagan was president at the time.
Corales believes Trump deserves more time — that 10 months isn’t enough to fix the big affordability challenges — but he agrees that, right now, things are not better.
“I think we still got to give it some time,” he said. “The country really shifted in the past couple of years. So his, his policies hopefully (will) take effect soon… it hasn’t happened yet.”
Ashley Ruiz, one of the barbers who works for Corales, says clients grumble about costs more now than they did during the presidential campaign.
She tries to help. “I’ll tell the client, ‘Hey, if you get it cut a little shorter, the haircut will have a longer lifeline.’ Because I want them to feel like they’re getting a service that will last longer so their money goes further.”
Ruiz understands the affordability stress; she does the tough math at home and lists rent, food and child care as her family’s biggest budget challenges. “They are a lot higher,” Ruiz said. “So I try to make wiser decisions in hope that things will get better.”
She was one of a handful of barbers at the Bethlehem shop who joined us for a few minutes of conversation — all Latino, with a mix of political allegiances, but a unanimous assessment that costs are higher now than a year ago. Health insurance and grocery prices were mentioned most.
‘It’s going to be triple, triple, triple this year’
The political impact is clear in the president’s moribund approval rating. Still, our visit was stunning. No one said costs were down. Some said they were about the same. But most — including several loyal Trump voters — said that the pressures they face in November 2025 are worse than a year ago.
Tariffs and grocery prices would have been the top complaint if you stopped in Cutters Bike Shop a few weeks ago, but now health care has been added to the mix.
John and Lisa Ronca own the shop, and have a teenage daughter who rides competitively. They get their health insurance through the Affordable Care Act exchange, and their renewal letter just came.
“It’s tripling,” Lisa Ronca said, repeating herself as if in disbelief. “It’s going to be triple, triple, triple this year, which equates to double the cost we pay for our mortgage, for our house. So we can’t keep that plan, to say the least.”
Extending enhanced ACA premium subsidies was the major goal for Democrats during the recent government shutdown. They failed to win concessions from Republicans, though Trump and some GOP leaders promise to work on Obamacare alternatives.
Lisa Ronca rolls her eyes at that, remembering Trump promised the same in his first term and did nothing. “There’s been years,” she said. “ I mean how many years?”
The Roncas are not Trump fans and did not vote for him.
The family eat in to save money, only indulging once a week at a favorite local Mexican restaurant. Lisa was at the grocery store a couple of hours before we stopped by the bike shop. “A couple of things I, like, have to do a double take. Like, wow.”
Pennsylvania has among the highest rate of inflation for food costs among the 50 states.
Trump has repeatedly said costs are down, and that it is his critics who are lying about prices being high. But “he doesn’t go grocery shopping,” Lisa Ronca said. “It’s hard. It’s definitely significantly more.”
The Roncas’ overall 2025 experience has been higher costs and lower profit margins.
The bike shop and its inventory — bikes and parts — carry labels from China, Taiwan, Vietnam, Indonesia. For them, Trump’s tariffs are like riding a rollercoaster blindfolded.
“Over this current year, it has been constant increases,” John Ronca said. “Every two to three months. We get letters from the companies, ‘We’re having a 10% increase.’ (Then) another 10% increase. And it just keeps escalating.”
A chain that was $35 a few months ago is now $50. A shock bump for a mountain bike up from $75 to $120.
Christmas season is approaching; early sales are behind last year. Lisa Ronca is worried people are spending less, worried to fill the bike shop floor with a normal holiday season hit. They have eliminated part-time help at the shop.
“I don’t know how many kids’ bikes to bring in for Christmas,” she said. “A 20-inch single-speed kids’ bike was $250, which is still decently high. Up to $400 in just the last couple of months. So it’s kind of tough.”
Though they generally vote for Democratic candidates, the Roncas did support moderate Republican Charlie Dent when he represented their congressional district a few years back.
Lisa Ronca said Dent was helpful when some new local bike trails were in the works.
“I have no problem voting for either side if the person is good for the area,” John Ronca said.
But their affordability stress — especially from rises in their health=care costs — shapes their early thoughts about next November.
“I’m going to vote for a person who puts a check on him,” John Ronca said as Lisa nodded in agreement. “You know what I mean? Who’s going to rein the president in.”
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