NORMALVILLE, Pennsylvania — Leading into Election Day last year, two of the biggest reasons people gave in interviews for voting for Joe Biden were to sense a return to normal and a little empathy for their struggles.

In short, they wanted their lives to reflect the bucolic scene this Fayette County town evoked after nearly a year of a deadly pandemic that had turned their lives upside down and took loved ones. They also said they were exhausted by then-President Donald Trump’s comportment.