At least some voters in the critical swing state of Pennsylvania are just now learning that President Joe Biden will not be running for a second term.
According to search data from Google, the state saw a spike in searches on Tuesday for “Did Joe Biden drop out” as Election Day kicked into full swing.
While the exact number of searches is unknown, the query spiked on Google Trends several times today, indicating that the question is repeatedly being asked.
The search was also seen in other states across the country.
The battleground state is considered one of the most important players in the run-up to the election.
The search was particularly centered in the state’s urban centers, Pittsburgh and Pennsylvania.
Turn out in those areas is critical, especially for Democrats, and the searches may indicate that casual voters are heading to the polls.
The state, according to NBC News, has been visited by Republican nominee former President Donald Trump and Democratic nominee Vice President Kamala Harris more than any other state in the country. Both nominees have also spent more money campaigning in Pennsylvania than anywhere else, hoping to capture its 19 Electoral College votes.
Over the day, the nexus of the search shifted from state to state.
Right now, the top-searching state is Washington, which Harris is expected to win. North Carolina, another critical swing state, also saw a spike in searches.
But despite the state’s notoriety—it’s where Trump was nearly assassinated and served fries at a McDonald’s and where Harris officially debuted her running mate Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz (D)—the search data reveals that not everyone is plugged in politically.
And who they might vote for, upon learning the news, is still up in the air.
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