Who Won Dr. Oz vs John Fetterman Senate Debate? What Polls, Viewers Say

Republican U.S. Senate candidate Dr. Mehmet Oz has claimed victory in Tuesday's debate against Lt. Governor John Fetterman, while the Fetterman campaign has praised the Democrat's "strong debate performance."

The candidates met each in the first and only debate in the hotly contested race for Pennsylvania's open Senate seat to succeed retiring Republican Senator Pat Toomey, with just two weeks to go until the midterm elections.

Some social media users shared an online snap poll conducted by Pittsburgh TV station WPXI, which found that Oz had defeated Fetterman, with 82 percent saying the celebrity surgeon had won compared to 18 percent opting for Fetterman.

The Oz campaign declared victory on Tuesday in an email sent to those on the campaign's mailing list and called the race the "most consequential and competitive Senate race in the country."

The email's subject line simply said: "WE WON."

The Fetterman campaign issued a statement via email on Tuesday that said the Democrat had "delivered a strong debate performance."

"We are thrilled with John's performance. He did remarkably well tonight, especially when you consider that he's still recovering from a stroke and was working off of delayed captions filled with errors," said Joe Calvello, the Fetterman campaign's communications director.

Fetterman used a closed captioning system during the debate to read moderator's questions as he continues to recover from a stroke in May.

Big Mistake

Thomas Gift is founding director of University College London's Center on U.S. Politics whose home state is Pennsylvania. He watched Tuesday's debate.

"While everyone wishes John Fetterman well in his recovery, it's important to tell the truth about his performance last night: it fell well below even the low bar his campaign set for him," Gift told Newsweek.

"The big mistake was to put Fetterman anywhere near the debate stage, and it's hard to understand how anyone on his team could have thought that the alternative—declining to debate—would have been an even worse outcome," he said.

Gift said that Fetterman "didn't do anything to allay concerns about his health, and if anything, raised even more questions about whether he's up for the job."

"Although last night's debate wasn't necessarily a death knell for Fetterman's campaign, his uphill battle to over swing voters just became considerably more steep," Gift added.

Debate Performance

There was mixed opinion among viewers who had watched the debate and took to social media to share their views on the candidates' performance. The Democratic and Republican parties unsurprisingly backed their nominees.

"Rs [Republicans] think debate was game-changer in tight Pa. Senate race," tweeted Burgess Everett, POLITICO congressional bureau chief. He quoted a DSCC (Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee) spokesperson as saying: "John Fetterman won tonight's debate by exposing Mehmet Oz for exactly who he really is."

Paul Begala, a CNN political contributor and scholar at University of Virginia's Center for Politics, tweeted: "Debates are more often lost than won, and Mehmet Oz lost this one with his line that abortion should be a decision between 'a woman, her doctor, and local elected officials.' He is fueling the Dems' top issue. @JohnFetterman must be pleased."

Adam Creighton, Washington Correspondent for The Australian, took a different view.

"Oz clearly won the debate in PA on traditional criteria; question is whether the win was so overwhelming it elicits sympathy for Fetterman," Creighton wrote.

Joe Concha, media and political columnist for The Hill, pointed to WPXI's poll and wrote: "Local affiliate conducts post-debate poll. 82-18 Oz. Devastating for Fetterman. And it should actually be worse given what we all witnessed."

Jay Cost, Gerald R. Ford Senior Nonresidential Fellow at the American Enterprise Institute (AEI), criticized both candidates.

"So I just watched the PA debate. My reaction: (1) Oz's answers were canned and completely unimaginative. Bereft of original thought. (2) Fetterman gave the worst debate performance in television history," Costa tweeted.

It remains to be seen if the debate will affect voters' intentions in a race that could prove crucial to control of the Senate and where Oz has recently eroded Fetterman's lead. Oz has been endorsed by former President Donald Trump.