Meet the Philly Neighborhood That Loved Donald Trump the Most on Election Day

A satellite image of the South Philadelphia neighborhood that produced Donald Trump’s best Philadelphia election results (Google Maps)

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The Philly Neighborhood That Loved Donald Trump the Most On Election Day

You either fell asleep to or woke up to the news that Donald Trump is going to be the next President of the United States. And you are either very happy or very distraught about that. Donald Trump not only won oh-so-essential Pennsylvania on Election Day. He did so decisively. And he didn’t just win Pennsylvania. He ushered in a veritable red wave throughout the state.

Of course, Vice President Kamala Harris won Philadelphia in a landslide, not that it mattered. Philadelphia always goes for the Democratic candidate for president as it probably always will. But what about the parts of Philadelphia that went in the other direction? What Philadelphia neighborhoods loved Donald Trump the most on Election Day? That’s what I wondered on Wednesday morning as I tried my best to let Wawa coffee and Vitamin Water take my election hangover to task.

Fortunately, Philadelphia election results are broken down into the 66 wards that make up the city and the 1,703 divisions that collectively make up those 66 wards. You can think of a division as a hyperlocal neighborhood while a ward is the larger neighborhood that surrounds you.

A map showing election results in Philadelphia, breaking down which wards went for Kamala Harris and which wards went for Donald Trump (map courtesy City Commissioners Office)

Donald Trump won five wards in Philadelphia on Election Day: the 26th Ward in deep South Philadelphia; the 45th Ward, which includes parts of Port Richmond and Bridesburg; and the 58th, 63rd, and 66th wards, all in Northeast Philadelphia.

Of those, Trump saw his best overall ward numbers in the 58th Ward, which includes Somerton and Bustleton. (If you’re sitting at the intersection of Bustleton Avenue and Red Lion Road, you’re in the heart of this area.) In the 58th Ward, Trump received 57.5 percent of the vote, while 41 percent of voters there voted for Kamala Harris. This is also the ward where Trump won the highest percentage of divisions. Only three of the ward’s 44 divisions went for Kamala Harris.

But the division that went hardest for Trump was in South Philadelphia. The 26th Ward contributed 56 percent of its vote to Trump. The 4th Division of the 26th Ward was where Trump managed to get 73.9 percent of the vote, his highest division result in any of the city’s wards. And just where is 4th Division of the 26th Ward?

This division lies in the blocks between Broad and 16th streets and Bigler Street and the Schuylkill Expressway — plus the slivers of 16th Street and Sydenham Street that run between Bigler Street and Moyamensing Avenue. Yes, the division is immediately adjacent to the infamous Marconi Plaza, where men with guns, bats and hatchets “protected” the plaza’s Christopher Columbus statue in 2020. Coincidence?

But What About Kamala Harris?

Well, she lost the election. So there’s that. And according to Philadelphia election results, Kamala Harris won all of the divisions in the wards that she won, in a majority of cases. (A candidate can win a ward even if they’ve lost some of the divisions in that ward.) The 10th Ward gets the big prize for the best results for Kamala Harris for any ward in the city. She picked up 95 percent of the vote there. And in Division 12 of the 10th Ward, Donald Trump got but 9 votes. That’s in West Oak Lane.

But What About Jill Stein?

Please. It’s been a really long couple of days.

How About the Other Elections?

Spotlight PA does a great job breaking down the up-to-the-minute results of other key Pennsylvania races, some of which are still too close to call as I write this. You can see their guide here.

Is There Anything Else Happening That Doesn’t Involve the Election? Good News Only, Please!

OK, OK …

• If you’re not trying to completely avoid politics, Hamilton is in town at the Academy of Music. And you can still score $10 tickets!
• Congrats to The Temple News, the student-run university media outlet, which just won a bunch of journalism awards.
• High of 80 today. High of 77 tomorrow. My advice: Go to the beach. Sit in a chair on the sand. Watch the waves.
• The Eagles are favored to beat the Cowboys this Sunday. Kickoff is 4:25 p.m. in Texas.
• If you’re looking to burn off some steam, our locals parks need your help with collecting leaves and cleanup. Click here for more details on the Love Your Park event this weekend.
• If it’s time for a drink, grab a ticket to Philly Mag’s awesome Whiskey Fest. It’s this Thursday at the Linc.

Until tomorrow, folks!