Fetterman, Oz vie for Black voters in close Pa. Senate race

PHILADELPHIA (AP) As Sheila Armstrong grew emotional in recounting how her brother and nephew were killed in Philadelphia, Dr. Mehmet Oz sitting next to her inside a Black church, their chairs arranged a bit like his former daytime TV show set placed a comforting hand on her shoulder.

- Mike Catalini and Marc Levy

Later, he gave a hug to Armstrong, who has been an employee of Oz's campaign for Pennsylvania's U.S. Senate seat, and said, How do you cope?"

Two days later, on a stage 4 miles away, Oz's Democratic rival, John Fetterman, stood with Lee and Dennis Horton and spoke of his efforts as lieutenant governor to free the two Black men from life sentences.

"Almost 30 years in prison, condemned to die in prison as innocent men, and I fought to make sure they come out to their families," Fetterman told the crowd.

Black voters are at the center of an increasingly competitive battle in a race that could tilt control of the Senate, as Democrats try to harness outrage over the Supreme Court's abortion decision and Republicans tap the national playbook to focus on crime in cities.

They are perhaps the Democratic Party's most loyal supporters. About 9 in 10 Black voters nationally went for Joe Biden in 2020, according to AP VoteCast, an expansive survey of more than 110,000 voters nationwide. In Pennsylvania, the support was similar, at 94%.

There's no evidence of a looming mass defection to Republicans like Oz. But if he can peel off even a small share or a critical mass of Black voters choose not to vote it might prove consequential in a race that polls show as close.

In Philadelphia, where Black voters are the largest bloc in the swing state's biggest Democratic bastion, some activists question Democrats’ outreach and fret about turnout.

Charles Ellison, the executive producer and host of Reality Check, a daily public affairs program on Philadelphia's prominent Black-themed WURD radio, said Democrats lack a unified message tailored for the Black community and didn't undertake a long-term investment in Black voter outreach.