Democratic Pennsylvania Senate candidate John Fetterman’s favorability odds tanked following his only public debate before the Nov. 8 election.
Predictit, an online-based prediction market offering exchanges on political and financial events, mimics a stock market transaction in terms of subject’s favorability. Users can purchase “shares” with real currency which the website uses to reflect favorability ratings.
The prediction market site showed Fetterman’s rank drastically dropping in favorability as Republican challenger Dr. Mehmet Oz’s ranking rose significantly after last night’s debate performance.
The prediction market site currently holds Oz with a $.66 lead over Fetterman’s $.38 approval as of Wednesday morning. Oz has steadily gained traction on Fetterman’s initial lead showing a $.53 lead compared to Fetterman’s $.50 lead prior to the debate. Initial ratings following Democratic and Republican Pennsylvania Senate primaries earlier in the year showed Fetterman with a significant $.68 lead over Oz’s $.33 rating in late July.
Following the debate between Republican Mehmet Oz and Democrat John Fetterman, Oz's chances shot up on @PredictIt in the past two hours. pic.twitter.com/POJKMpvBUy
— annmarie hordern (@annmarie) October 26, 2022
Fetterman’s health was a main point of discussion leading up to last night’s public appearance with Oz following a stroke days before the Democratic Senate primary in May.
Fetterman appeared unable to form complete sentences and at times struggled to respond to moderator questions. The Democratic candidate has insisted he was fit to run for office, citing his doctor’s letter though moderators pushed back on Fetterman claiming he had not released an extensive report on his medical history or details on his stroke recovery.
“Overall, Lt. Governor Fetterman is well and shows strong commitment to maintaining good fitness and health practices. He has no work restrictions and can work full duty in public office,” wrote Dr. Clifford Chen of Fetterman’s health last week.
Real Clear Politics‘ Oct. 26 adjusted poll average shows Oz with a 2.7% lead over Fetterman following the Tuesday debate.