John Fetterman

[constituency_baseline] District summary: Pennsylvania is the fifth-most populous state with approximately 13 million residents. It is a key swing state that voted for Trump in 2016, Biden in 2020, and Trump in 2024. The state has a median household income of $77,971 (2020-2024), slightly above the national median, with an 11.78% poverty rate. The population is 73.0% White, 10.3% Black, 8.7% Hispanic, and 3.8% Asian. Approximately 23.17% of Pennsylvanians — nearly 3 million people — are enrolled in Medicaid, and 1.96 million rely on SNAP. The economy blends legacy manufacturing (steel, industrial), healthcare (UPMC, Geisinger), higher education (Penn State, UPenn, Pitt, Carnegie Mellon), energy (natural gas fracking), and agriculture. Major federal installations include the Letterkenny Army Depot and Tobyhanna Army Depot. The state lost a congressional seat after the 2020 Census and has a closely divided electorate. Senator Fetterman's term runs through 2028.

Voted yea on PN 11-1 (Cloture on Pete Hegseth for Secretary of Defense) on 2025-01-23: Fetterman was the only Democrat to vote to advance Hegseth's nomination past a procedural hurdle, though he ultimately voted against final confirmation. The procedural yea enabled the nomination to reach the floor despite Hegseth facing allegations of sexual misconduct and financial mismanagement at veterans' organizations. Fetterman's vote was pivotal — without it, the nomination might have stalled in committee.

Voted yea on PN 11-3 (Confirmation of Kristi Noem as Homeland Security Secretary) on 2025-01-25: Fetterman joined six other Democrats in confirming Kristi Noem to head DHS — the department charged with carrying out Trump's mass deportation agenda. This confirmation directly contradicted his stated progressive immigration stance. The vote highlights the stark gap between his past campaign rhetoric and his governing choices on immigration enforcement personnel.

Voted yea on PN 12 (Confirmation of Pam Bondi as Attorney General) on 2025-02-05: Fetterman was the only Senate Democrat to vote to confirm Pam Bondi — Trump's attorney general nominee who had defended Trump during his first impeachment and backed his false election fraud claims. The vote passed 54-46. Fetterman stated his votes come from 'an open-mind and an informed opinion after having a conversation with them.' He confirmed 10 of Trump's 22 cabinet nominees — tied for the most among Senate Democrats.

Voted yea on H.R. 9745 (Continuing Resolution to End 40-Day Government Shutdown) on 2025-11-10: Fetterman was one of only eight Democrats (plus one independent) to vote with Republicans to end the 40-day government shutdown, breaking from his party's strategy of using the shutdown as leverage for ACA subsidy extensions. He stated 'I'm sorry to our military, SNAP recipients, gov workers, and Capitol Police who haven't been paid in weeks.' The defection drew fury from progressive leaders including Bernie Sanders, who called it 'a very, very bad vote.'

Voted yea on S. 52 (ICC Sanctions Bill (procedural cloture)) on 2025-01-28: Fetterman was the only Democrat in the entire Senate to vote with Republicans to advance sanctions against the International Criminal Court over its arrest warrants for Netanyahu and Gallant. He wrote on X he was 'deeply disappointed by the outcome' after Democrats blocked the bill. The vote demonstrates that on matters involving Israel, Fetterman's alignment with the GOP and AIPAC (his top donor at $245K) is absolute, even when every other Senate Democrat disagrees.

Voted yea on S. 5 (Laken Riley Act) on 2025-01-20: Fetterman was one of only 12 Senate Democrats to vote for final passage and an original co-sponsor with four GOP senators. The bill mandates ICE detention of undocumented immigrants accused of nonviolent crimes. He called deportation of criminal migrants 'really common sense' and said he doesn't know 'why anyone finds it controversial.' The vote placed him against 83% of his party on the first major bill of Trump's second term.