John Fetterman, the Democratic nominee in a tightly contested Pennsylvania U.S. Senate race against Republican Mehmet Oz, has drawn widespread criticism for making few public appearances, mostly avoiding the media, and agreeing to just one debate.
Oz has said that Fetterman is hiding from voters and reporters, and trying to run the clock out on the race as the candidates compete to replace retiring Republican Sen. Pat Toomey.
Now, an Oct. 6 Associated Press report indicates that Fetterman has kept a light daily schedule as Pennsylvania’s lieutenant governor and has often been absent from state business, including presiding over the state Senate, which is one of his most significant responsibilities.
Fetterman has served four years as lieutenant governor, an elected role in Pennsylvania, with an annual salary of $179,000.
In Pennsylvania, a lieutenant governor’s primary roles are to preside over state Senate sessions, serve as chair of the Board of Pardons, and lead the governor’s emergency management committee.
The Associated Press review of Fetterman’s records shows that his daily schedule was empty for around one-third of the workdays between January 2019, when he took office, and May 2022, when he suffered a severe stroke just days before the primary.
On days when his schedule listed activity, Fetterman’s typical workday lasted four to five hours, the records indicate. In 2019, details show he frequently attended ribbon cuttings and traveled the state on a listening tour about the topic of legalizing marijuana.
During the COVID-19 crisis, records show that Fetterman’s schedule often included a morning meeting about the pandemic followed by interviews with local and national media outlets.
There were instances when Fetterman chose national media interviews over state business commitments, according to the Associated Press.
Fetterman’s work schedule showed around 70 days with no activities or events during the first half of 2022, the Associated Press reported.
“This report is a misleading and inaccurate reflection of John’s actual schedule that totally fails to capture the breadth of his official work and his accomplishments,” Fetterman campaign spokesman Joe Calvello said in a statement.
Fetterman said in a statement that “as lieutenant governor, my record of showing up and shaking up this office has transformed the Board of Pardons, saved Pennsylvania millions in taxpayer dollars, and grown support in our state for defending LGBTQIA+ rights, weed legalization, union workers, and raising the minimum wage.”
The details of Fetterman’s calendar as lieutenant governor are drawing attention because his work ethic has been questioned through the Senate campaign by Republicans. Oz’s campaign and the GOP have repeatedly said that the 53-year-old Fetterman is a trust fund beneficiary who was financially supported by his father until he was elected lieutenant governor.
Fetterman grew up in affluent York, Pennsylvania, which is located west of Philadelphia and south of Harrisburg. His father, Karl, is the founder and owner of Kling Bros. Insurance.
In 2005, Fetterman was elected as mayor of Braddock, a borough of around 2,000 residents southeast of Pittsburgh.
In 2015, Fetterman ran for U.S. Senate and lost in the Democratic primary. A financial disclosure that year indicates that he was paid an annual salary of $1,800 as mayor of Braddock and received $54,000 from his parents.
He bought the spacious Braddock loft, where he currently lives with his wife and three children, from his sister for $1, according to property records.
Oz’s campaign released a digital ad calling his Democratic opponent “Freeloading Fetterman” and showing an image of a man in a black hoodie, a reference to Fetterman’s fashion preference.
“Thank goodness for daddy’s deep pockets,” the narrator says in the spot.
Former President Donald Trump, who endorsed Oz, said at a September rally in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, that Fetterman is “a spoiled and entitled socialist loser who leeched off his parents’ money—you know he lives on his parents’ money—until he was 49 years old.”
Records from Fetterman’s tenure as mayor of Braddock (2006-2018) reveal that he missed at least 53 city council meetings (approximately one-third) over the 12-year period.
As lieutenant governor, Fetterman did not lead 27 of the 53 state Senate sessions in 2020, Senate journals indicate. During that time, when the pandemic curtailed activity, legislators were allowed to log in to sessions by video.
In 2021, Fetterman was absent for one-third of the state Senate’s 59 session days, records show.
The Oz campaign and multiple media outlets have repeatedly criticized Fetterman for his sporadic public appearances and questioned his fitness to serve if elected to the Senate.
Fetterman has agreed to only one debate–on Oct. 25, two weeks before the Nov. 8 general election–because he does not want to answer questions about his health and his extreme far-left record and platform, Oz has said.
Election day is almost one month away, and the Oz-Fetterman race has tightened. Three weeks ago, Fetterman held a 10-point advantage in multiple polls. A new survey from the Monmouth University Polling Institute reported that 48 percent of the respondents will “definitely” or “probably” vote for Fetterman compared with 43 percent for Oz.
The poll—a telephone survey of 610 Pennsylvania voters between Sept. 29 and Oct. 3—indicated that 25 percent of voters will “definitely” cast their ballot for Oz while 37 percent will “definitely” vote for Fetterman.
The Cook Political Report recently changed its forecast on the race from “leans Democrat” to “toss-up.”
“In conversations with several GOP strategists and lawmakers—who a month-and-a-half ago had begun to put the Keystone State in the loss column—this has emerged as a margin-of-error race that they once again see winnable,” the Cook report’s Jessica Taylor wrote in a social media post. “Republicans and Democrats alike admit the race has tightened and that Pennsylvania could be the tipping point state for the Senate majority.”
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