Republican Dr. Mehmet Oz remains in a statistical tie in Pennsylvania’s U.S. Senate race with his radical Democrat opponent, Lt. Gov. John Fetterman, according to a pair of polls.
A Franklin & Marshall College poll published Thursday shows Fetterman has the support of 45 percent of registered voter participants, giving him just a 3-point lead over Oz, who garnered 42 percent of the response. As Oz is within the margin of error of 5.6 percentage points, the race is a statistical tie. The Republican has made tremendous gains on Fetterman in recent months and seems to be finding his stride with just over 40 days left until the November 8 election. The pollster’s survey on the race from last month showed Oz was a daunting nine points back from Fetterman, whose campaign has begun to waver.
On Monday, Phillips Academy released a poll showing an even tighter race, with Oz exactly two points behind Fetterman. Of registered voter respondents, 46.5 percent say they back the Democrat compared to 44.5 percent who support Oz. Again, Oz is within the margin of error, which is plus or minus 3.6 percentage points. Another 8.9 percent of registered voters remain undecided.
Both polls also gauged the temperature of the state’s governor’s race between Republican State Sen. Doug Mastriano and Democrat Attorney General Josh Shapiro. Unlike the senate race, the results varied greatly. Franklin & Marshall College finds Shapiro has a 14-point lead over Mastriano, at 51 percent and 37 percent, respectively. The attorney general has expanded his lead compared to the pollster’s August numbers, which showed Shapiro at 48 percent and Mastriano at 36 percent.
Conversely, the Phillips Academy poll shows a much closer contest between the candidates, as 45.9 percent say they back the Democrat, while 42.5 percent support Mastriano. As the margin of error is 3.6 percentage points, Mastriano is in a statical tie, according to the Phillips Academy. Another 11.6 percent of respondents are undecided.
In the Franklin & Marshall College poll, the Center for Opinion Research conducted interviews with 517 registered voters from September 19-25. Participants included 210 Republicans, 235 Democrats, and 72 independents, and the poll’s margin of error is plus or minus 5.6 percentage points.
The Phillips Academy poll sampled 759 registered voters between September 16-19, and its margin of error is plus or minus 3.6 percentage points.