For one Pennsylvania Republican, winning reelection to the US House in a suburban Philadelphia seat likely hinges on his long-standing effort to keep President Donald Trump at arm’s length.

Brian Fitzpatrick’s bid for a sixth term, built on a foundation of centrism and reinforced by his votes against some of Trump’s signature issues, marks a test of whether a bipartisan record is enough to hold off the expected wave of support for Democrats next month.

Fitzpatrick does not go after Trump by name, but he’s called the president’s rhetoric “unbecoming” and has railed against parts of his agenda, including the administration’s reversal of Russian sanctions earlier this month. On Friday, he introduced legislation to uphold the federal prohibition on Russian energy imports.

“There have not been sufficient answers forthcoming from the administration,” Fitzpatrick, whose district has a sizeable Ukrainian population, told MS NOW. “And you better well damn believe that we’re going to demand them.”If he loses on election night, it will signal a very difficult path for Republicans. Democrats only need to net a handful of seats to take control of the House — and reassume oversight of the Trump administration — and their path goes straight through districts like Pennsylvania’s 1st.

Fitzpatrick’s district contains all of Bucks County and a portion of Montgomery County, which votes reliably Democratic. In 2024, Trump became the first Republican presidential nominee to carry Bucks County since George H. W. Bush, edging out Kamala Harris by several hundred votes.

For now, the 52-year-old former FBI agent and federal prosecutor holds an advantage in his race against Democrat Bob Harvie, a 55-year-old Bucks County commissioner. But Fitzpatrick is one of only eight Republicans from districts that Harris also won, and forecasters have the race tightening amid national momentum toward Democrats.

That has made him, along with fellow moderates like Mike Lawler of New York, prime targets for flipping.

Democrats are attacking Fitzpatrick in ads as a pawn of Trump and House Speaker Mike Johnson, whose political action committee, Congressional Leadership Fund, has pumped millions of dollars into the race.

House Majority PAC, the biggest spender in the race, and other Democratic groups combined have spent about $10 million on ads boosting Harvie, according to AdImpact. Republican groups have laid out $7.9 million backing Fitzpatrick, whose campaign has spent about $5.2 million on paid media.

Fitzpatrick did not respond to a request for comment. Pro-Fitzpatrick ads call the congressman an “independent voice” for the district and tout his bipartisan record.

In an interview, Harvie said he was confident he could flip the seat. Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries and Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro both have put their full support behind Harvie, appearing alongside him on the campaign trail.

“We have really the kind of fatigue people feel in this district for a congressman who’s just not doing what he needs to be doing,” Harvie said.

Since first elected in 2016, Fitzpatrick has walked a partisan tightrope in a bid to win over the GOP base and swing voters.

Fitzpatrick was one of only two House Republicans to oppose Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill. He also crossed party lines to extend healthcare subsidies and limit Trump’s military actions in Iran. In September, he was among the dozens of lawmakers and candidates who sat out Trump’s midterm convention.

“I actually think he’s a good barometer of the fact that the county is very bipartisan, and I think he very much listens to that,” said Laurie Frayne, a 58-year-old Republican from Doylestown who supports both Trump and Fitzpatrick. “I don’t require my politician to mimic a president’s policy every time. You need to think for yourself.”In Bucks County, along the main drag of downtown Quakertown – named for the religious group that settled there in the 1700s – voters were frustrated with the high cost of living.

“The economy definitely could be better. A lot of people are feeling the pinch,” said Scott Woodrow, who owns a small bakery business based in Bucks County. Woodrow is a Republican who votes across party lines, including for Shapiro. “I just vote for whoever stands for what I believe in.”This year, he will be sticking with his party and backing Fitzpatrick. “I believe what he says,” Woodrow said. Harvie pushed back on the notion that Fitzpatrick is a moderate.

Bucks County voters associate him with a Republican Party “that has just completely left the center” and is out of step with an area “that’s always been moderate, always been purple,” Harvie said. “I wish we had a voice like that. He’s not it.”Harvie pointed to how much national Republicans, including Johnson, are investing to keep the seat in the party’s hands. “If he wasn’t really in their pocket, would he be getting all that money?” he said.

Fitzpatrick has outpaced Harvie on the fundraising front, bringing in $1 million during the last fiscal quarter and ending it with $2.3 million left on hand – though he spent $5 million during that period. Harvie spent just under $1 million while bringing in $860,000, and entered October with $720,000.

But it remains to be seen if Fitzpatrick’s money and centrist record will be enough to drive turnout among GOP loyalists while drawing the Democratic voters he needs to stay in office.

“I don’t know that much about Bob Harvie,” said Lori Oraschin, a Democrat and alpaca farm owner from Quakertown, “but what I know is that Brian Fitzpatrick is just in Donald Trump’s pocket, so I would never vote for him.”