Scranton crime spike dogs Dem mayor as she challenges GOP Rep in Biden's hometown

The Electric City has seen a rise in violent incidents, according to local outlets, with five homicides recorded in the first half of 2024 - more than the previous year overall - and a police officer shot in the head who survived.

All this comes as Pennsylvania again plays its role as a political bellwether, with at least three congressional districts in the Commonwealth rated even on a partisan level or within one point in either party's favor.

The 8th District - where Cognetti is challenging Bresnahan - is no different.

"You can go to the actual crime database; you can check those stats online and see that crime is in fact not spiking in the City of Scranton. You can see by every single type of incident what that looks like."

In 2020, Cognetti said during an interview with the Black Scranton Project that she would like to see a city where police officers do not have to carry firearms.

"I do want to get to a point where we don't have to worry about any officers having holsters or guns in them. That is ideally where we get in our whole country," she said, amid a broader discussion on the importance of body cameras.

"I lived in Japan, in those cities, that is where we need to get. We have a long way to get there," she said, adding that there are also law-abiding gun owners like her brother who lives near Glacier National Park and hunts.

During a 2024 interview with Scranton's ABC affiliate, Cognetti said the "situation where these things keep happening" in Scranton is "really tough to swallow."

"Those are stark numbers," Cognetti said. "They're also still relatively low compared to unfortunately what some cities suffer."

Cognetti pushed back on the crime-wave narrative. A spokesperson told Fox News Digital that under the Democrat's leadership, "violent crime has gone down and Scranton has invested millions of dollars in the city's police department to bolster public safety because she believes every person and family deserves to feel safe in their community."

"In Congress, Paige will continue to stand with our brave law enforcement officers and fight for more funding for local police across Northeastern Pennsylvania."

In response to the crime debate, Bresnahan campaign manager Peter Brath said that Cognetti "has repeatedly shown a stunning disregard for the safety of her constituents, including the very law enforcement officers sworn to protect them."

"She downplays rising gang violence and murders, wants to disarm the police, and was recently caught partying in New York City just days after the brutal machete murders of two women and a service dog devastated the community."

"Time and again, Mayor Cognetti refuses to get her priorities straight. The people of Scranton deserve better," Brath said.

Scranton reportedly received about 50 new police vehicles under Cognetti's tenure that include AI-driven computer systems. The investments also included live-feed bodycams and dashcam upgrades.