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The race between famed Dr. Mehmet Oz and former hedge fund CEO David McCormick is headed for a countdown after Pennsylvania’s top election official said Wednesday that the margin between the two top Republican candidates was thin enough. how to activate one.
In a statement, Acting Secretary of State Leigh M. Chapman said that “I would order a legally binding statewide count in the May 17 Republican primary race for a seat in the United States Senate. Mehmet C. Oz and David H. McCormick, ranked first and second respectively, have a total vote within the one-half margin of one percent that triggers a mandatory count under state law. “
The move boosts the result of the race in June, as counties have until June 7 to recount the ballots and inform the secretary of state of their findings before June 8.
According to the latest vote count, Oz leads McCormick by 947 votes, out of more than 1.3 million cast.
Annie Linskey of The Post talks about the uneven influence of former President Donald Trump on key primary races on May 17th. (Video: Mahlia Posey / The Washington Post)
Oz has the backing of former President Donald Trump, who has spoken out against the vote and urged the surgeon to simply declare himself the winner.
In a statement, McCormick said, “We are proud that our campaign received nearly 418,000 votes, won 37 of 67 counties, and contributed to a historic turnout with a very fine difference between Mehmet Oz and me.” He said the campaign was expecting a “quick resolution” of the count so that “we can unite to defeat Socialist John Fetterman in the autumn”.
The Oz campaign did not immediately respond to the news of the count.
The Republican primary winner will face Lieutenant Governor Fetterman (D) in a contest deemed crucial to Senate control. The seat is currently held by Senator Patrick J. Toomey (R), who is retiring after 11 years in office.
Democrats seized the news of the count on Wednesday, and the Democratic Senate Campaign Committee argued that the eventual GOP winner will be damaged by the “endless fight within the party.”
“The count will ensure that Republicans remain divided, disorganized and in chaos, and that any GOP candidate who finally emerges will be lame in the general election at an even greater disadvantage,” DSCC spokesman David Bergstein said in a statement. press release.
The primaries have also put the focus on Republican views toward mail voting, after McCormick filed a lawsuit this week to make sure ballots that don’t have handwritten dates are not ruled out. The Oz campaign has rejected the move as an offer to count “legally rejected ballots.”
It’s unclear how many ballots don’t have handwritten dates, but McCormick could get closer to Oz if those ballots are counted. While Oz has fared better with in-person voting, ballots are slightly in favor of McCormick, who captured 32 percent of the state’s postal votes compared to Oz’s 23 percent, according to the Department of Homeland Security. ‘State of Pennsylvania.
Maria Louise Paul contributed to this report.