Dr. Oz Will Face Off Against John Fetterman in Pa.

Dave McCormick concedes to celebrity doctor in GOP primary for US Senate seat
By Bob Cronin,  Newser Staff
Posted May 25, 2022 2:59 PM CDT
Updated Jun 4, 2022 6:00 AM CDT
It's a Recount for Oz, McCormick
Republican Senate candidates David McCormick, left, and Mehmet Oz during campaign appearances this month in Pennsylvania.   (AP Photo/File)

Update: It's going to be Mehmet Oz vs. John Fetterman in November in the run for a US Senate seat out of Pennsylvania. The Washington Post reports GOP candidate Dave McCormick conceded Friday to the celebrity doctor, who's been endorsed by former President Donald Trump. After more than two weeks of a recount in which McCormick says he ensured "every Republican vote was counted," he noted that it just didn't seem numerically possible for him to close the gap between himself and Oz. "It's now clear to me, with the recount largely complete, that we have a nominee," he said, pledging his support for Oz. The doctor acknowledged McCormick's "gracious" concession phone call. CNN notes that less than 1,000 votes separated the two GOP candidates after the May 17 primary, triggering the recount. Our original story from May 25 follows:

With every Pennsylvania county reporting its unofficial count in the Republican primary for Senate, 902 votes separate Mehmet Oz and Dave McCormick. That's close enough that state law triggers a recount, Secretary of State Leigh Chapman announced Wednesday. Counties have until noon June 8 to turn in their totals, CNN reports. The winner will face Democratic Lt. Gov. John Fetterman in the fall, in a race that will help decide which party controls the Senate. Chapman acknowledged the national interest in the election, per the Philadelphia Inquirer. "I want to emphasize that this automatic recount is intended to ensure that the count is accurate and that there is confidence in the results and outcome," she said.

The current count has Oz, the former TV doctor endorsed by former President Trump, with 419,365 votes and McCormick, former director of a hedge fund, with 418,463. Recounts are required in Pennsylvania when the margin is 0.5% of the total cast or less. Since the law took effect in 2004, seven recounts have now been triggered in the state. Only three took place (this will be the fourth), because candidates waived their right to a recount in three of the contests. None of the recounts changed any outcomes. In this case, McCormick could have called off the recount but didn't.

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Ballots without a date on them, or an incorrect date, have become an issue. There are 860 of them, and McCormick has sued to have them counted. Oz's campaign is opposed to that, saying that counting those ballots could do long-term damage to Pennsylvania elections, per CNN. A hearing in the suit is scheduled for Tuesday. Chapman said the lawsuit won't affect the counties' process. "Our guidance will enable counties to arrive at an accurate count no matter what the courts decide." (More Pennsylvania primary stories.)

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