Trump ally Mehmet Oz is on course to win his Pennsylvania Senate battle against Democratic rival John Fetterman, according to new analysis.
The Republicans are hoping to take both chambers of Congress at next month's election, allowing them to dramatically restrict the power of President Joe Biden.
An analysis by Real Clear Politics (RCP), based on opinion polling adjusted to take account of past inaccuracies, projects Oz will win Pennsylvania by 1.9 percent of the vote.
The calculation is drawn from an RCP produced average of recent polls, which puts Fetterman ahead by 3.2 points. However, the RCP calculated polling averages for past elections significantly understated Republican support, by a mean of 5.2 points.
Thus, adjusted for past undercounting of GOP support, RCP forecasts victory of Oz in the key swing state.
Oz, known as Dr Oz professionally, shot to fame as a TV doctor, appearing in five series of The Oprah Winfrey Show as a health expert. In 2009, he launched The Dr. Oz Show, which aired until January of this year.
His Democratic Party opponent, Fetterman, is currently serving as Lieutenant Governor of Pennsylvania.
In May, Fetterman was hospitalized after suffering a stroke, saying in a statement: "I had a stroke that was caused by a clot from my heart being in an A-fib rhythm for too long.
"The good news is I'm feeling much better, and the doctors tell me I didn't suffer any cognitive damage."
There were renewed fears for Fetterman's health earlier this month, when the Democrat used 'closed caption technology' to read questions during an interview with NBC News reporter Dasha Burns.
Burns later tweeted: "In small talk before the interview without captioning, it wasn't clear he was understanding our conversation."
On Wednesday, Oz repeated his call for his rival to publish his medical records, tweeting: "Pennsylvania deserves transparency from Fetterman."
However, Dr Clifford Chen, Fetterman's primary care physician, wrote a letter after another meeting with the candidate on Friday, insisting he capable of serving as an elected official.
It said the Senate hopeful is "recovering well" and "can work full duty in public office."
On Thursday, Biden is expected to meet with Fetterman in Philadelphia, after delivering an infrastructure speech in Pittsburgh.
White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre called Fetterman an "impressive individual" on Monday, adding: "The president feels that he is very much capable of doing the job."
Former President Donald Trump held a rally in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, last month to support Oz and the GOP's candidate for state governor, Doug Mastriano.
Speaking to Newsweek, Reed Galen, co-founder of anti-Trump conservative group The Lincoln Project, raised concerns about the number of GOP candidates standing next month who don't recognize the 2020 presidential election result.
He said: "Election deniers will destroy confidence in our democratic institutions because they don't care about the truth and are uninterested in governing.
"Their only purpose is to obtain power so they can reinstate Donald Trump as President in 2024 regardless of the outcome of the vote. If they take office, they will throw the idea of free and fair elections out the window to get the results they want."
Trump is continuing to insist the 2020 election was rigged against him, despite this claim being repeatedly rejected by courts and independent election experts.
Mehmet Oz and John Fetterman have been contacted for comment.
Uncommon Knowledge
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Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
About the writer
James Bickerton is a Newsweek U.S. News reporter based in London, U.K. His focus is covering U.S. politics and world ... Read more
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