CQPolitics

Nestled in the northwestern corner of the state, the 3rd takes in all of Erie County — Pennsylvania’s only Lake Erie coastline — and includes parts of six other counties. The economy of this Rust Belt, historically blue-collar area centers around the city of Erie’s port and industrial sector.

Erie County, where roughly 45 percent of the district’s residents live, has retained an industrial presence despite many years of industry decline. Overall, manufacturing makes up nearly a quarter of the county’s workforce and the number of jobs in the service sector has increased by more than 20 percent since 1990. General Electric is the city’s largest employer, and the health care industry here continues to grow. There are several high precision technology companies in the area, and the city also attracts nearly 4 million visitors each year, especially during the warmer months, to the public beaches and Presque Isle State Park.

Outside of Erie, no city has more than 17,000 residents. These communities are dominated by small business and scores of tooling and machine shops, especially in Crawford County. Mercer County (a small portion of which is in the 4th) still has some steel mills and boasts the largest concentration of pipe and tube production companies in the nation. Like most of the district, Butler County in the south is dominated by manufacturing, although Butler also benefits from the presence of Slippery Rock University.

The city of Erie’s median household income is well below the state or national averages, while townships in surrounding areas are above the median. Pockets of black residents in northern and central Erie help give the county a Democratic lean, and Mercer also has a Democratic lean. These Democratic tendencies are offset by the Republican leanings in Butler and Crawford counties. Overall, the district gave George W. Bush 53 percent of its presidential vote in 2004.

Major Industry

Manufacturing, service

Cities

Erie, 103,717; Sharon, 16,328; Butler, 15,121

Notable

The reconstructed U.S. Brig Niagara, a fighting ship from the War of 1812, is docked in Erie; In 1941, the Bantam Car Company of Butler developed the Bantam Reconnaissance Car, the prototype of the Jeep.