Trump, Biden Square Off In 'Cookie Election' At Hatboro Bakery

HATBORO, PA — The 2020 presidential election has been heated, to say the least. But a Pennsylvania bakery is bringing Trump and Biden supporters together to make their voices heard, while enjoying a tasty treat.

Lochel's Bakery, in Hatboro, has been holding a "cookie poll" since early September. Each day, customers are invited to purchase either a blue-and-white "Biden 2020" cookie, supporting Democratic former Vice President Joe Biden, or a red-and-white "Trump 2020" one to back Republican President Donald Trump.

It's a tradition dating back to 2008 at the family bakery, which has been around since 1942 and in Hatboro since 1995. But it has taken off this year like never before.

"It was just minor counts then — maybe a couple of hundred," bakery owner Kathleen Lochel said of the first cookie poll in 2008. "Every election, it grew. But, this year, it's like an erupting volcano."

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In less than a month, the bakery has sold nearly 2,000 Trump and Biden cookies.

And early returns have been positive for the incumbent. As of Thursday morning, Trump led Biden in the cookie count, 1,283-684, Lochel said.

It's a good omen for the president. Former President Barack Obama was the leader in both 2008 and 2012, while Trump won the bakery's obviously unscientific poll in 2016. (Montgomery County, however, is expected to go the other way in actual voting. In 2016, the county voted decidedly for Democrat Hillary Clinton, adding 256,082 votes to her Pennsylvania tally compared with 162,731 for Trump.)

Lochel said she considered not holding the contest this year, mindful of how nasty the election has gotten in some quarters. In the end, though, she said she decided it might be a good way to spur business after some tough months during the coronavirus shutdown.

"With the tremendous losses that we lost there, I said let's just do it," she said. "It'll continue to give hours to the staff, to the cake decorators to the bakers. It'll fill a little bit of a void.

"Ultimately, it was like, 'Let's see what happens this election,' (and) the response has been more than I ever thought."

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In Lochel's eyes, the contest is also a fun and friendly way to harness some of the energy of this year's vote.

"I don't think it's caused division — it's literally a cookie ...," she said. "I do think it's a friendly game of competition, but there are a lot of serious people. They know that small businesses are hurting.

"I think in the customers' eyes, they're helping a small business, and they're purchasing something they're passionate about."

Lochel's Bakery, at 57 S. York Road in Hatboro, is closed Mondays and open 6 a.m.-7 p.m. Tuesday through Friday, 6 a.m.-6 p.m. Saturday and 6 a.m.-3 p.m. Sunday. Election cookies are available each day until the November election, as long as supplies last.