• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • Advertise
  • Contact Us
  • About Towleroad
  • Towleroad on Social Media
  • Privacy Policy

Towleroad Gay News

Gay Blog Towleroad: More than gay news | gay men

  • Travel
  • Gay Pride
  • Sports
  • Law/Justice
  • Celebrities
  • Film/TV/Stream
  • Republicans
  • Madonna
  • Books
  • Men
  • Trans Rights
  • Tech/Science
  • Royals
  • Monkeypox

US heads to polls for Senate race roiled by last-minute drama

Towleroad May 17, 2022 Leave a Comment

Published by
AFP
521929 origin 1
Senate hopeful Kathy Barnette, pictured at a Republican leadership forum in Newtown, Pennsylvania on May 11 2022, has closed the gap on frontrunner Mehmet Oz, who has the endorsement of former President Donald Trump

Washington (AFP) – Pennsylvania picks its candidates Tuesday for the crucial US midterm elections in a contest that has gripped the political establishment — with a Democratic frontrunner suffering an 11th-hour stroke and a far-right Republican outsider surging into contention.

It is the most consequential day so far of the primary season, with hopefuls in North Carolina, Oregon, Kentucky and Idaho vying to be their party’s representative in November’s congressional and state ballots.

All eyes are on Pennsylvania’s Republican Senate contest, however, which looked for months like a toss-up between hedge fund tycoon David McCormick and TV surgeon Mehmet Oz, who has former president Donald Trump’s endorsement.

But the race has been rocked in the final days by a come-from-behind surge from a long-shot insurgent Kathy Barnette, who has drawn practically level with her big-spending rivals.

Barnette had been so far behind that the early frontrunners spent little time digging into her background until recent days, when a series of anti-Islam and homophobic statements were uncovered.

Oz, who would be the first Muslim Republican senator if elected, zeroed in on a 2015 social media post in which Barnette said that “pedophilia is a cornerstone of Islam.”

She has falsely denied posting the slur and told Fox News on Sunday that some of her inflammatory posts were aimed at starting a conversation, rather than “full thoughts.”

She is also facing questions over her appearance at the “Stop the Steal” rally that turned into the 2021 US Capitol riot, and spreading Trump’s false claims of election fraud.

‘Full recovery’

The ex-president’s support for Oz will serve as a new test of his sway over Republicans, after a clean sweep of successful endorsements in the first three state primaries but failure of a high-profile candidate in Nebraska a week ago.

A Fox News poll released this week showed Barnette with support from 19 percent of respondents, McCormick with 20 percent and Oz with 22 percent. 

The anti-abortion Barnette has seen her popularity swell among conservatives after speaking powerfully about her mother being raped at age 11 and giving birth to her at just 12. 

But Republican leaders worry that she will prove unable to expand her appeal beyond the Republican base, costing the party an eminently winnable Senate seat in November.

Donna Patterson, head of political science at Delaware State University, told AFP Barnette’s “unprecedented rise” would likely shut out McCormick, leaving Oz as her main rival.

“Frankly, things have shifted so quickly in the past 10 days that it is difficult to predict a winner,” she added.

Trump said in a statement last week however that Barnette would “never be able to win the general election against the radical left Democrats.”

In the race for Pennsylvania governor, Trump has the party fretting all over again after he endorsed far-right candidate Doug Mastriano, a state senator who has a narrow polling lead but is considered by many to be too out of the mainstream to win in the midterms. 

The Pennsylvania primary took another turn, this time on the Democratic side, as Lieutenant Governor John Fetterman, the overwhelming favorite for the party’s Senate primary, suffered a stroke on Friday.

The tattooed, six-foot-nine-inch (2.05-meter) liberal said he had suffered no cognitive damage and was expected to make a “full recovery” but he remains hospitalized.    

According to the most recent Franklin and Marshall University poll, Fetterman leads Marine veteran and moderate US congressman Conor Lamb by nearly 40 percentage points.

Topics: A News, Aaon, Art, Film/TV/Stream, Media, Social Media, Tech/Science More Posts About: Conor Lamb, Donald Trump, Mehmet Oz

Related Posts
  • Jan. 6 Capitol riot hearing to focus on Trump pressure on Justice Dept
  • US Capitol riot panel looks at Trump pressure on states to flip vote
  • New US Capitol riot hearings promise fresh drama
  • Analysis-Trump’s justices decisive in long campaign to overturn Roe v. Wade

    Analysis-Trump’s justices decisive in long campaign to overturn Roe v. Wade

    Published by Reuters By Lawrence Hurley WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Seventeen months after leaving office, former President Donald Trump delivered on a campaign promise when the conservative U.S. Supreme Court majority he cemented overturned the 1973 Roe …Read More »
  • U.S. Supreme Court overturns abortion rights landmark

    U.S. Supreme Court overturns abortion rights landmark

    Published by Reuters By Lawrence Hurley and Andrew Chung WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The U.S. Supreme Court on Friday took the dramatic step of overturning the landmark 1973 Roe v. Wade ruling that recognized a woman’s constitutional …Read More »
  • Elon Musk’s daughter granted name change to cut ties with father and reflect new gender identity

    Elon Musk’s daughter granted name change to cut ties with father and reflect new gender identity

    Published by BANG Showbiz English Elon Musk’s daughter has legally changed her name to reflect her new gender identity and cut all ties with her father. The Tesla and Space X billionaire’s 18-year-old girl’s birth name …Read More »
  • Prince Charles to give blessing to Commonwealth countries wanting to remove Queen Elizabeth as head of state

    Prince Charles to give blessing to Commonwealth countries wanting to remove Queen Elizabeth as head of state

    Published by BANG Showbiz English Prince Charles is to give his blessing to Commonwealth countries that wish to move away from the royal family. The Prince of Wales will meet with prime ministers and presidents at …Read More »
Previous Post: « Russian parliament to consider ban on exchanging Ukrainian Azov prisoners
Next Post: Family Of Buffalo Shooting Suspect Payton Gendron Blame COVID-19 & ‘Lizard Brain’ For Slaughter That Left 10 Dead »

Primary Sidebar

News

  • Landmark gun-safety bill heads to U.S. House after Senate passage

    Landmark gun-safety bill heads to U.S. House after Senate passage

  • Prosecutors seek 25-year prison sentence for Chauvin over breach of Floyd’s rights

    Prosecutors seek 25-year prison sentence for Chauvin over breach of Floyd’s rights

  • New York officials slam ‘shocking’ Supreme Court gun ruling

    New York officials slam ‘shocking’ Supreme Court gun ruling

RSS Partner Links

  • Chris Pratt Says That His Super Mario Voice Is “Unlike Anything You’ve Heard”
  • OMG, which super famous male musician’s jock strap is on sale for $37k!?
  • Fred Goldman Claims That O.J. Simpson Owes Him $96 Million
  • Seth Sikes Sings Fire Island's Praises
  • OMG, LISTEN TO THIS: Lil Nas X & NBA YoungBoy lash out in ‘Late To Da Party (F*CK BET) ‘
  • OMG, he’s naked: Brett Geddes aka “Terminte” goes full-frontal in ‘THE BOYS: Season 3’
  • OMG, comedian Michael Henry presents: “NO KINK AT PRIDE!?”

Most Recent

  • Factbox-Where abortion is still legal in the U.S. after the fall of Roe v. Wade

    Factbox-Where abortion is still legal in the U.S. after the fall of Roe v. Wade

  • Analysis-Trump’s justices decisive in long campaign to overturn Roe v. Wade

    Analysis-Trump’s justices decisive in long campaign to overturn Roe v. Wade

  • U.S. Supreme Court overturns abortion rights landmark

    U.S. Supreme Court overturns abortion rights landmark

  • Elon Musk’s daughter granted name change to cut ties with father and reflect new gender identity

    Elon Musk’s daughter granted name change to cut ties with father and reflect new gender identity

  • Prince Charles to give blessing to Commonwealth countries wanting to remove Queen Elizabeth as head of state

    Prince Charles to give blessing to Commonwealth countries wanting to remove Queen Elizabeth as head of state

  • Anne Hathaway ‘so influenced’ by Patricia Field

    Anne Hathaway ‘so influenced’ by Patricia Field

  • Prince Charles expresses ‘personal sorrow’ over impact of slavery

    Prince Charles expresses ‘personal sorrow’ over impact of slavery

  • Monkeypox State-by-State Case Count (CDC and State Health Orgs) & CDC Health Guidelines

    Monkeypox State-by-State Case Count (CDC and State Health Orgs) & CDC Health Guidelines

Most Commented

Social

Twitter @tlrd | Facebook | Instagram @tlrd
  • Advertise
  • Contact Us
  • About Towleroad
  • Towleroad on Social Media
  • Privacy Policy
[towleroadmr] [towleroadtn]

Footer

Copyright © 2022 · Log in