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ICYMI: Mehmet Oz’s image took a beating during the GOP primary, and it’s weighing on him as the general election starts. [The Philadelphia Inquirer]

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT

Philadelphia Inquirer: Mehmet Oz’s image took a beating during the GOP primary, and it’s weighing on him as the general election starts.

By Jonathan Tamari

June 30, 2022

Key Points:

  • When Republican Senate nominee Mehmet Oz met with Pennsylvania’s GOP House delegation recently in Washington, he was blunt about one immediate challenge: his scars from primary season.

  • Oz squeaked out a victory in his first-ever run for office, but the primary left a mark.

  • [Oz] absorbed more than $20 million of attack ads that damaged his standing in many voters’ minds, including among the Republican base.

  • In his razor-thin win, nearly 70% of the GOP electorate voted for someone else, and early public polling has shown deeply negative views of the GOP nominee, in line with what members of both parties say they saw leading up to the May 17 primary, when even many Republicans viewed Oz in a poor light.

  • “We are looking at these numbers, and it’s quite disturbing,” said Kathy Barnette, a Republican who ran against Oz for the GOP nomination, and often accused him of being a faux conservative.

  • Only 28% of likely Pennsylvania voters said they viewed Oz favorably, according to a Suffolk University/USA Today poll in early June, while 50% saw him unfavorably. An AARP survey found even more deeply negative impressions of Oz.

  • It’s a sharp contrast to Fetterman, who romped to victory with broad support from the Democratic base and faced relatively little resistance from his rivals. His favorability ratings are positive in early polling.

  • Democrats argue that the early negative impressions of Oz could foreshadow two lasting weaknesses. At a time when most candidates soften their tones and tack toward the political center, Oz still needs to solidify his support with conservative base voters, many of whom were left skeptical of his credentials. And, Democrats and some Republicans say, the negative views of Oz point to underlying questions about whether voters can trust him.

  • Oz carries his negative ratings after a primary ad blitz that challenged his loyalty to Pennsylvania, accused him of shifting positions on issues such as guns and abortion, and dubbed him a “RINO,” or “Republican in name only,” who couldn’t be trusted.

  • Democrats say the skepticism of Oz points to deeper troubles. Add up his loose ties to Pennsylvania — he lived in New Jersey for more than 30 years after attending medical and business school in Philadelphia — and his attempts to distance himself from past statements on guns, abortion, and other topics, they say, and voters have reason to question his character.

  • “Mehmet Oz is a fraud and a scam artist who isn’t from Pennsylvania and isn’t trusted by voters here,” said Jack Doyle, a spokesperson for the Pennsylvania Democratic Party.

  • During the primary he described himself as “pro-life” and favored overturning Roe v. Wade.

  • While many candidates emerge with baggage from tough primaries only to shrug it off for the general election, it’s more likely to stick to someone like Oz, said Anna Greenberg, a Democratic pollster who has worked on Pennsylvania races. He’s already well-known, she said, and the advertising was so extensive that many voters are already aware of the critiques. Unlike in many primaries, the attacks weren’t directed to just a narrow slice of voters.
  • “Suburban, middle-of-the-road voters have all seen it,” Greenberg said, “and it’s attached to someone with a big personality, with a well-defined big personality.”

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