The Pennsylvania state government confirmed Wednesday that a fiercely contested Republican Senate primary will head to a recount — with Dr. Mehmet Oz clinging to a 902-vote lead over businessman David McCormick.
Acting secretary of state Leigh Chapman said in a statement that state law requires an automatic recount because the top candidates are separated by less than .5 percentage points.
“Counties may begin their recount as early as Friday but must begin no later than June 1,” Chapman said. “They must complete the recount by noon on June 7, and they must submit the recount results to the Department of State by noon on June 8.”
The May 17 primary was bitterly fought between Oz, backed by former President Donald Trump, and McCormick, supported by many ex-Trump aides, including Hope Hicks, Kellyanne Conway and former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo.
Oz, a former heart surgeon and TV talk show host, currently leads with 419,365 votes, or 31.21%, versus McCormick’s 418,463 votes, or 31.14%.
Third-place Kathy Barnette, a political commentator, took a quarter of the Senate primary vote after winning support from the Club for Growth and many social conservatives.
Trump has urged Oz, who would be the nation’s first Muslim senator, to declare victory before the official vote-counting is complete.
Pennsylvania Lt. Gov. John Fetterman, an ally of socialist Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders, easily won the Democratic primary for the Senate, despite undergoing primary-day surgery to install a pacemaker and defibrillator after suffering a stroke.
The bruising Republican primary featured sharp attacks from the rival candidates.
Trump bashed McCormick, who was until this year CEO of the world’s largest hedge fund, Bridgewater Associates, as a “liberal Wall Street Republican” who “is not MAGA.”
McCormick’s campaign was buffeted by criticism of Bridgewater raising $1.25 billion last year for new investments in China — making the firm one of the top foreign investors in the country. His allies denied that he offshored jobs to India at a different company.
Oz, meanwhile, faced attacks for his work for Turkish Airlines and participation in Turkish elections.
