Millions follow rich candidates in Pennsylvania Senate race

HARRISBURG — Cash is pouring in to Pennsylvania’s hotly contested race for U.S. Senate, as wealthy and well-connected candidates moved in from out of state, followed by millions of dollars going into TV ads and super PACs.

Filings posted online by the Federal Election Commission before Monday night’s deadline showed Mehmet Oz — best-known as daytime TV’s host of “The Dr. Oz Show” — loaned himself $5.2 million. He spent nearly all of it.

Meanwhile, a super PAC supporting a Republican rival of Oz’s, former hedge fund CEO David McCormick, raised more than $5 million from the world of finance.

That included $5 million from conservative billionaire donor Ken Griffin of Chicago-based Citadel LLC, a multinational hedge fund and financial services company that handles an estimated 25% of all U.S. stock trading.

In the Democratic primary race, Lt. Gov. John Fetterman kept a strong cash advantage — $5.3 million to $3 million — over his nearest rival, Conor Lamb, a third-term congressman from suburban Pittsburgh.

Fetterman raised $2.7 million in the last three months of 2021, but spent more than half of it, while Lamb raised $1.3 million and spent a little less than half, according to the filings.

Three other rivals in each party’s primary each raised in the six-figures in the last quarter of 2021. The primary election is May 17.