A new Franklin & Marshall College survey of the Pennsylvania Senate race found Democratic contender and current Lieutenant Governor John Fetterman 13 percentage points ahead of his multiple mansion-owning, Trump-backed challenger, Mehmet Oz.
Initial results included a significant portion of overall respondents who indicated they weren’t sure about which candidate would receive their support this November. The reported breakdown included 43 percent for Fetterman, 30 percent for Oz, and 20 percent indicating uncertainty. Available information seems to indicate a little under one-third of the unsure respondents indicated they leaned towards Oz when asked a follow-up question, perhaps exemplifying his lower levels of popularity and a general lack of enthusiasm behind his campaign, even among those who normally vote for Republicans. The college found a colossal lead for Fetterman when respondents were asked which candidate they feel “best understands the concerns of Pennsylvanians.” The Democratic contender saw 52 percent of respondents pick him, but just 28 percent selected Oz.
Adding the portions who indicated a lean towards one of the candidates to the overall totals leaves Fetterman with 45 percent of the overall support and Oz with 36 percent, which remains, of course, a substantial lead for the Dem. In the poll, higher portions of overall respondents indicated a favorable view of Fetterman versus those who shared a favorable opinion of Oz. A full 43 percent of overall respondents said they had an either somewhat or very favorable view of Fetterman, but just 27 percent said the same of Oz — which doesn’t exactly seem conducive for creating a winning coalition in the state. A full 42 percent of overall respondents said they had a strongly unfavorable view of Oz. For Fetterman, that portion was just 29 percent. Meanwhile, the new Franklin & Marshall College poll also showed Democratic gubernatorial contender Josh Shapiro leading GOP challenger Doug Mastriano, who is currently a state Senator and is known for his promotion of election delusions.
Overall, Fetterman is enjoying a significant fundraising advantage over Oz. As reported on this site, his campaign recently brought in more than $1 million in under a week after a widely mocked video of Oz shopping for crudités (meaning vegetable platters) began broadly circulating online. From January 1 of last year to June 30 of this year, Fetterman’s campaign accumulated over $26 million, which doesn’t include recent totals. Oz’s total from March 17 of last year to the same end-point is evidently a little over $19 million, but most of that total is money Oz loaned his campaign. Fetterman provided himself with no loans in the covered period. Nearly all of the Pennsylvania Democratic contender’s total is from individual contributions, but for Oz, total individual contributions are a little under $4 million for the time period reflected by data available from the Federal Election Commission. Notably, most of Oz’s individual donations were either in amounts over $200 or from donors who gave a total of over $200. For Fetterman, the portion in that category was under half.
