Democrat John Fetterman and Republican Mehmet Oz meet tonight for their only debate in a fierce contest that could decide which party controls the U.S. Senate.
in what polls say is a close race to replace retiring two-term Republican U.S. Sen. Pat Toomey. It’s the only major statewide debate happening this year in Pennsylvania since Democrat Josh Shapiro and Republican Doug Mastriano couldn’t reach an agreement on terms for a gubernatorial debate.
Meanwhile, Fetterman’s lead in polls has shrunk as Oz’s Republican allies poured tens of millions of dollars into a perennial battleground state that Biden won by just 1 percentage point in 2020. “This was always going to be an away game for John Fetterman,” said Mustafa Rashed, a Democratic political consultant based in Philadelphia.
The debate host, Nexstar Media, declined to allow an AP photographer access to the event, and the AP declined to accept handout photos.Fetterman’s stroke happened just days before his resounding victory in the Democratic primary. Recovery kept him out of the public eye for much of the summer, though the campaign said he was meeting with aides, taking long daily walks, driving and doing household errands., beating Republican rival David McCormick by 951 votes out of more than 1.