Conor Lamb, who ticks off every box on the checklist for a traditional Democratic candidate.
It makes a striking contrast with his closest rival for the nomination, Rep. And he has an appearance that’s atypical in the political arena: He is closer to 7 feet than 6, bald, goateed and tattooed, and he attends most events wearing gym shorts and a hoodie. (Hannah Beier/Reuters)įetterman earned his lead through grassroots fundraising, visits to every county in the state and blunt messaging. John Fetterman poses for a photo with 4-year-old Ryan Dow at a candidate event in Easton, Pa., on May 1. He won the lieutenant governor’s office in 2018 and rose to prominence in late 2020 combating baseless allegations of election fraud by Trump supporters. The former mayor of the Pittsburgh suburb of Braddock, Fetterman ran unsuccessfully for Senate in 2016 as the progressive candidate in the field, finishing third. John Fetterman announced his Senate run in February 2021 and has enjoyed a lead in fundraising, polling and name recognition ever since. Both Sands and Bartos were in single digits.īecause Pennsylvania does not require candidates to clear 50% support, it’s likely that the Republican Senate nominee will squeak by with a bare plurality of the vote in the crowded field. The latest poll in the race from Emerson College, which surveyed 1,000 likely voters last Friday and Saturday, showed Oz with 32%, Barnette with 27% and McCormick with 26%. The other candidates in the race are Jeff Bartos, a Philadelphia-area real estate investor who has served as the state party’s finance chair and unsuccessfully ran for lieutenant governor in 2018, and Carla Sands, who served as Trump's ambassador to Denmark and was one of his key fundraisers in California before recently relocating back to Pennsylvania. Additionally, she has refused to clarify elements of her biography, even to conservative outlets. marched alongside members of a right-wing extremist group to the Capitol and has made a number of Islamophobic and homophobic comments. 6, 2021, “Stop the Steal” rally in Washington, D.C. (Matt Rourke/AP)īarnette has promoted 2020 election conspiracy theories organized buses to the Jan. Senate in Pennsylvania, poses for a photo with attendees at a candidate forum in Newtown, Pa., on May 11. Kathy Barnette, a Republican candidate for U.S.