Sen. Bob Casey (D-Pa.) holds an early 6-point lead over Republican David McCormick in Pennsylvania’s Senate contest, according to a Quinnipiac University poll.
Less than a month after McCormick jumped into the race to challenge the incumbent, Casey leads with 50 percent of registered voters in the state to McCormick’s 44 percent, according to the new polling.
Nearly 9 in 10 Republicans back McCormick, while 96 percent of Democrats back Casey. Independents were split roughly half-and-half, with 45 percent for the Republican and 44 percent for Casey.
Nearly a third of Pennsylvania voters said they hadn’t heard enough about Casey, while 57 percent said the same of McCormick.
“David McCormick, who defied former President Trump by refusing to say the 2020 election was stolen, dusts himself off from his previous Senate bid and comes back for more in what is immediately an intensely watched and competitive race with three term incumbent Senator Bob Casey,” Quinnipiac University polling analyst Tim Malloy said in the report.
McCormick, the former CEO of Bridgewater Associates, lost a primary bid for then-retiring Sen. Pat Toomey’s (R-Pa.) seat in last year’s midterms to Republican Mehmet Oz, who eventually lost to Sen. John Fetterman (D-Pa.).
With Casey running for reelection, the 2024 race is expected to be closely watched as Republicans vie to win the Keystone State’s upper chamber seat. The election handicapper Cook Political Report rates Casey’s seat as a leans-Democratic.
Conducted Sept. 28-Oct. 2, the poll surveyed 1,725 Pennsylvania self-identified registered voters and had a margin of error of plus or minus 2.4 percentage points.