Dr. Mehmet Oz holds a razor-thin lead on David McCormick, as Kathy Barnette is gaining on both in the Pennsylvania Republican Senate primary race, according to the latest Franklin & Marshall College Poll.
The results were taken before Wednesday night's debate hosted live on Newsmax, but the results show the trio of leaders pulling away from the pack — albeit slightly — ahead of the May 17 vote.
Endorsed by former President Donald Trump, Dr. Oz (18%) has gained 2 more points, nearly doubling his support since March, when he was at 10%. The Trump endorsement has vaulted him into the lead.
While McCormick, a former President George W. Bush official, has lost his lead, he too has been gaining each of the past two months. He led in March at 13% before Trump made his endorsement, rising to 15% in April and gaining just 1 more point to 16% in May.
Barnette, who had some big moments in the Newsmax debate, particularly on the issue of abortion, has been steadily rising, too. She was at 6% in March before rising to 7% in April and now 12% in May.
Trump's former ambassador to Denmark, Carla Sands, seems to have been hit hardest by not getting Trump's endorsement. She was in a statistical, three-way tie for first in March at 11% and has sat at just 5% each of the past two months.
While it appears to be a three-way race now, there is no clear runaway yet and 39% of registered GOP voters remain undecided and 57% of those who have chosen a candidate say they could still change their minds.
"Oz (19%) and Barnette (18%) are running neck and neck among the Trump faction of Republican voters, while McCormick (28%) has an advantage among the traditional faction," according to the pollster.
Franklin & Marshall College Polling surveyed 792 registered GOP voters in Pennsylvania from April 20-May 1. The results have a margin of error of plus or minus 4.4 percentage points.
Eric Mack ✉
Eric Mack has been a writer and editor at Newsmax since 2016. He is a 1998 Syracuse University journalism graduate and a New York Press Association award-winning writer.
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