Gerry and Susan Kayatin of Jefferson Twp. are married but found themselves on opposite sides of the ballot box Tuesday.
Mr. Kayatin cited defense cuts and "Obamacare" as reasons for reluctantly voting for former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, who he called the "lesser of two evils."
Mrs. Kayatin voted for Mr. Obama, who she said needed more time to turn around the economy he inherited.
"The way (former President George W.) Bush had us in a bind, it will take a lot longer to get us out of it," Mrs. Kayatin said.
That sentiment was echoed by other voters in Lackawanna County.
Robert Keegan of Moscow said of Mr. Obama, "He's doing a great job. Got us out of two wars, got bin Laden and spared us from a depression."
"He's trying. Let's give him some more time," said Nicole Zayac Scranton.
A Democratic stronghold, the county delivered again for Mr. Obama. According to unofficial results, with all 163 precincts in Lackawanna County reporting, Mr. Obama received 61,309 votes, or 63.1 percent, to 34,730 for Mr. Romney, or 35.8 percent.
That surpassed Mr. Obama's garnering of 62.2 percent of the 108,539 votes cast for president in 2008, which made him the most popular presidential candidate in the county in 44 years and the third most popular ever.
Pennsylvania had not been considered a swing state until the final days of the campaign. Mr. Romney's late play for votes here prompted the Obama campaign to dispatch former President Bill Clinton to stump for the president in the Keystone State, including a stop in Scranton on Monday.
Clark Summit Republicans Cindy Owens and Joe Skinner crossed party lines to vote for the president.
"I am better off than I was four years ago," said Ms. Owens, adding her four children made education her priority.
Mr. Skinner - lukewarm about both candidates - said, "It's not that the policies of the Obama Administration make me feel better, it's the scariness of the Romney ticket.
"I don't trust Mitt Romney. He's got too much of a habit of sending jobs overseas," he added.
But Dickson City resident Janice Novak said she was proud of her vote for Mr. Romney and had high hopes he could improve the economy.
"He's a businessman. He understands business. He understands jobs," Ms. Novak said. "I think he will unite the Democrats and Republicans. Obama has proved he's not capable of doing that. He's full of manure. He's just a big talker."
Joanna and Steve Nunemaker, Republicans from Clarks Summit, brought their four children to the polls to experience an election. Saying they were "single issue" voters who opposed abortion, the Nunemakers voted for Mr. Romney.
"(Mr. Romney) is more pro-life than his opponent," Mr. Nunemaker said.
While many chose between Republican red and Democratic blue, David Kveragas of Newton Twp. - who hopes to see the federal government play a smaller role in the future - voted for Libertarian Party candidate Gary Johnson.
Contact the writers: jlockwood@timesshamrock.com, rbrown@timesshamrock.com, @rbrownTT on Twitter