Pennsylvania state Sen. Doug Mastriano (R), the GOP pick for governor in the state in this year’s elections, is 16 percent behind Democratic challenger Josh Shapiro in a new survey from Fox News. Neither are the incumbent — Shapiro is currently the state attorney general.
Mastriano has a reputation as an extremist. He has aligned himself with Trump on issues of handling elections and respecting the results, and in recently resurfaced comments, he raised the prospect of charging women with murder in cases violating abortion restrictions he was proposing. Even in Texas, where abortion throughout the entirety of pregnancy is a felony punishable by up to life in prison in most instances, consequences are geared towards providers rather than those receiving abortions. Mastriano has also expressed opposition to universal mail-in voting, which was implemented in the state for the first time during the 2020 elections, and he has pushed a proposal by which any eligible Pennsylvanian could serve as an election observer anywhere in the state instead of only near where they live. That change to the rules could open up opportunities for organized harassment of marginalized communities by far-flung conspiracy theorists.
Shapiro secured 53 percent of the support in the new Fox polling, while Mastriano had only 37 percent, although a full 10 percent indicated another selection, that they were undecided, or that they wouldn’t vote. Shapiro did significantly better in the new Fox numbers than fellow Dem John Fetterman, who is running in a close Senate race against Trump-backed Republican Mehmet Oz, aka Dr. Oz. Among other points of contention, Oz has faced scrutiny for his loose ties to Pennsylvania. He spent decades living in New Jersey — which is, you know, not Pennsylvania, and he only moved into Pennsylvania comparatively recently. He owns multiple mansions and is apparently the top self-funding candidate at the federal level during this year’s elections, meaning he’s provided the most personal loans to his campaign of any federal candidate this year. Oz, who of course has a long history in television, has loaned $23 million to his campaign.
A full 44 percent indicated to Fox they were concerned Oz isn’t sufficiently familiar with Pennsylvania to serve as one of its Senators. Over a million Pennsylvanians have already voted, although comprehensive results might be delayed because the state won’t be processing or counting mail-in ballots until Election Day. In contrast, Florida does both before the election itself rolls around, allowing faster results. Meanwhile, Republican candidates in races for governor in other states are also faltering in polls. In Maryland, Democratic contender Wes Moore is way, way ahead of Trump-aligned state legislator Dan Cox in the governor’s race, the winner of which will replace Republican Larry Hogan. In Massachusetts, Geoff Diehl is significantly behind Democratic candidate Maura Healey. The two are running to replace another Republican, Charlie Baker.
