Dave McCormick, Republican Senate candidate in Pennsylvania, said his popularity in the polls was rising as voters realized the importance of the upcoming election.
“People realize that this is truly the most important election of their lives,” Trump told Fox News Digital's Paul Steinhauser in an interview Thursday, “and we need leadership that will bring about change. This is an election of change.”
He will face off against incumbent Sen. Bob Casey (D-Pa.), who was elected in 2006 and is seeking reelection to his third term in the Keystone State.
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Casey (left) and his rival, McCormick (right), believe Pennsylvania voters recognize the importance of the 2024 election. (Reuters/AP)
McCormick was tied with Casey in the latest survey at 46 percent. CNN Poll Of lace.
The bill was a close contest, but some polls project a win for Pennsylvania Democrats. Poll of registered voters A poll taken just a few weeks ago showed Casey beating McCormick 50% to 36%.
A CNN poll revealed a tie between the candidates. Real Clear Politics The average of polls compiled shows Casey with 48% and McCormick with 45%, suggesting a close race with less than nine weeks to go until Election Day.
Casey and his family have deep roots in Pennsylvania, especially as his father, former Gov. Bob Casey, served as governor for several years and was popular with Pennsylvanians, whose positions on issues like gun rights and abortion gave him a reputation as a moderate that his son has benefited from in state elections.
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McCormick also sought the Republican nomination for Senate in 2022. (Getty Images)
But Senator Casey is less of a moderate than his father. Although he has described himself as pro-life, he joined Democrats in condemning the Supreme Court's 2022 overturning of Roe v. Wade.
Casey's party loyalty is especially evident in his recent legislative record, where he voted in lockstep with President Biden 99% of the time during the 117th Congress. Five Thirty Eight.
“We knew it was going to be a very close race. Pennsylvania is a tough state,” McCormick told Fox News Digital, acknowledging that Casey, a Republican, is the incumbent and is still relatively unknown.
“But people are starting to know who I am,” he said.
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Casey, pictured, is the son of former Governor Bob Casey Sr. (AP/Patrick Semansky)
McCormick explained that he believes this is why the gap between him and Casey on the measures so far is narrowing.
He went on to argue that Pennsylvania “may be the only place where Kamala Harris would be worse for Democrats than President Biden as the top candidate.”
Following Biden's campaign halt and Harris' last-minute nomination as vice president at the Democratic National Convention last month, Harris has shown improvement over Biden's previous polling numbers.
But McCormick predicted Harris would do worse in Pennsylvania than Biden, citing Biden's past record as a Republican in the state. But he said Harris is “way out of touch with the people of Pennsylvania.”
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Harris was nominated as the Democratic presidential candidate last month. (Scott Olson/Getty Images)
He listed Harris' past positions, including “banning fracking, granting amnesty to 10 million illegal immigrants and making sure they get federal benefits, mandatory gun buybacks, and abolishing private health insurance companies.”
But some of the policy positions McCormick outlined have since been reversed by the Harris campaign.
“Those positions are not well-received by most Pennsylvanians, and that's the dilemma she faces when she comes to the state,” McCormick said.
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And he noted that Casey has been a “sure thing” for Biden and has almost always voted with him.
“Harris-Waltz will get 99% of the vote,” McCormick predicted.
“Pennsylvanians aren't looking for approval. They're looking for someone who will stand up and fight for their beliefs and what they believe is right for Pennsylvanians,” he said.
Casey's campaign did not respond to questions from Fox News Digital about the narrowing poll gap and why the gap between Casey and McCormick appears to be narrowing by the time of publication.
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