“A lot of the benefits have only just begun to accrue,” Saccone, 59, said.
Indeed, tax experts said that because employers had until Feb. 15 to start using the new tax-withholding tables issued by the IRS, some employees may not start seeing a difference in their paychecks until early March.
"By the time November comes around people are going to be dancing in the street," Saccone said.
But with only a few weeks left until the Pennsylvania contest, Trump is not leaving anything to chance in a seat that Republicans have held since 2002. The president is planning a rally later this month in Pittsburgh and is expected to praise Saccone and the tax overhaul.
The special election, which will fill a seat left vacant when incumbent Republican congressman Tim Murphy quit amid personal scandal, is an early litmus test for the GOP tax message, said Ford O'Connell, a Republican strategist.
It is "a trial run," heading into November, he said. “Trump obviously wants to hold the seat and Trump wants to find out if he has delivered enough to keep voters happy.”
Meanwhile Lamb, the 33-year-old Democrat, is trying to walk a fine line in this conservative district. He tells voters he is not against tax cuts, but opposes what he sees as legislation designed to give the biggest breaks to the wealthiest Americans and large corporations.
“I would have liked people in the middle to be the sole beneficiaries," Lamb said. “We know who that bill was for.”
Republican groups, meanwhile, have already spent nearly $5 million on ads tying Lamb to Democratic House leader Nancy Pelosi, who derided the bigger paychecks that many Americans are now seeing as "crumbs."
O’Connell, the Republican strategist, is optimistic the tax message will gain traction. Middle-class voters could well warm to the tax cuts by November, he said. And he believes Saccone will win next month.