Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (New York) invited Pennsylvania Republican David McCormick and Arizona Sen. Ruben Gallego (Democratic) to his Senate orientation this week, but initially announced that both races The invitation to both men was not extended because the ballots had not been counted. .
Mr. Schumer's decision to exclude Mr. McCormick was controversial, as the Associated Press had declared Mr. Schumer the winner of the Pennsylvania Senate race days earlier. Republican strategists argued that Sen. Bob Casey (D-Pennsylvania) had no viable path to erasing his opponent's 35,000-vote advantage.
Casey has not conceded the race, but Schumer on Tuesday extended an invitation to McCormick after pressure from colleagues.
“Ruben Gallego and David McCormick have been invited to attend the orientation,” a spokesperson for Schumer told reporters.
Schumer's office made the announcement after the Associated Press declared Gallego the winner in Arizona. This was followed by a call from The Hills Decision Desk headquarters on Saturday in which Gallego predicted the winner against Republican Kari Lake. DDHQ has not yet entered the Pennsylvania Senate race.
Pressure has been mounting on Mr. Schumer since Sunday to invite Mr. McCormick and Mr. Gallego to orientation.
Sen. Kyrsten Sinema (I-Ariz.) said in a post on
“In 2018, my race wasn't called for six days. I immediately went to Washington, D.C. to attend Senate orientation. That week, I learned a lot and built lasting relationships. “Dave McCormick and Ruben Gallego will be senators from Pennsylvania and Arizona. They should be invited to orientation and start learning the job,” she posted.
Sens. Lisa Murkowski (Alaska) and Susan Collins (Maine), two of the leading moderate Republicans in the Senate, also urged Mr. Schumer to include Mr. McCormick and Mr. Gallego in the orientation.
“I would like to congratulate Sen.-elect Dave McCormick, who has been declared the winner of Pennsylvania's Senate race by the Associated Press. I look forward to welcoming him to the Senate,” Murkowski wrote on X.
Mr. Collins wrote to X: “Congratulations to Senator Dave McCormick of Pennsylvania. We look forward to welcoming him to New Member Orientation in Washington this week.”
