File photo
As results for the 2024 U.S. presidential election pour in, the nation's attention is zeroing in on three states in the Great Lakes region that play an outsized role in the outcome of the election.
Wisconsin, Michigan and Pennsylvania are among the swing states in this year's election, a role all three states played in both the 2016 and 2020 elections as well.
Despite the swing state status of the three states, they've also gone by their own nickname - the "Blue Wall."
The three states gained the nickname after consistently voting Democratic in presidential elections, establishing the streak in 1992 with Bill Clinton's election over George H.W. Bush.
Wisconsin, Michigan and Pennsylvania all voted for the Democratic candidate in each presidential election from 1992 to 2012, which includes the elections of 2000 and 2004, which were both lost by the Democratic nominee.
Despite former President Barack Obama winning the three states by relatively comfortable margins twice, all three states broke for former President Donald Trump in 2016, paving his path to victory for the White House.
After playing a significant role in determining the 2016 election, the three states were vital in deciding the 2020 election, as all three states broke back into the Democratic column in favor of President Joe Biden.
Local
The three states provide Vice President Harris with her lone clear path to the White House, following Trump's projected victories in North Carolina and Georgia.
With the Sun Belt wins, the states play a large role in Trump finishing his path to a second term in the White House.
Feeling out of the loop? We'll catch you up on the Chicago news you need to know. Sign up for the weekly Chicago Catch-Up newsletter.
Experts have long said results of the presidential race could take time to call, but what happens in two key Midwest states could shift the timing earlier.
“Only if [Donald] Trump wins Wisconsin or Michigan," Democratic strategist Peter Giangreco told NBC Chicago. "If he wins either those states, it's probably over with. And if we know those states on Wednesday, that'll probably be it. I think the most likely path for Kamala Harris to the presidency is the blue wall states: Wisconsin, Michigan, Pennsylvania.”
