HARRISBURG, Pa. — Democrat John Fetterman and Republican Mehmet Oz squared off Oct. 25 in their first and only debate to represent Pennsylvania as U.S. Senator.
The neck-and-neck race is being closely watched across the nation and world, as control of the Senate could hang on the outcome.
Fetterman entered the debate at a disadvantage. His own campaign tried to downplay expectations, warning that debating “isn’t his format.” On top of that, the lieutenant governor is recovering from a May stroke and still has some auditory processing and speech issues.
Fetterman stumbled several times in his speech. He opened the debate by saying, “Good night everyone,” and spoke haltingly over some answers.
The debate was an hour long, and moments were quickly clipped and posted online as potential viral clips.
Many voters, though, were trying to focus more on the content of what was said rather than how it was said.
Oz repeatedly brought up his support of fracking, even in answering seemingly unrelated questions.
“I believe if we can unleash the energy beneath our feet here in Pennsylvania, there’d be plenty of money to go around,” Oz said in response to a question on whether he would raise the federal minimum wage from the current $7.25 an hour.
Fetterman seemed to contradict his own past statements criticizing the fracking industry when he clearly stated that he now supports fracking.
Both men agreed they would not expand the Supreme Court, though Fetterman would vote to remove the Senate filibuster, while Oz would not.
On abortion, Oz maintained his anti-abortion stance but sidestepped whether he would support a federal abortion ban.
“There should not be involvement from the federal government in how states decide their abortion decisions,” Oz said.
Fetterman said he would instead enact federal abortion rights protections, declaring, “Roe v. Wade for me should be the law.”
Rather than answer some questions, both candidates spent much of their time attacking the other, “He hasn’t been able to earn a living on his own,” Oz said of Fetterman. “He’s lived off his parents.”
“He got his ‘Pennsylvania house’ from his own in-laws," Fetterman said of Oz, putting air quotes around “Pennsylvania house.”
Fetterman also refused to commit to releasing his full medical records.
Though the debate was for U.S. Senator, the event had the air of a national or even international political campaign. News outlets from around the country and world came to cover it, in part because of its importance to deciding control of the Senate.
“This debate and the election here in Pennsylvania is very critical because it’s not just deciding the Senate number. It can be a signal or the return or the resurrection of Trump and Trumpism,” said Yangsoon Kim, a journalist with the Korean Broadcasting System.
Kim said former President Donald Trump is not popular in South Korea because he is seen as having tried to weaken the U.S.-South Korea Alliance.
All eyes will remain on Pennsylvania through the final days leading up to the election. Because Fetterman is only leading Oz by 2.3 points in the latest FiveThirtyEight polling average, the candidates’ performance during the debate could potentially sway the results.