Fact check: Pennsylvania’s US Senate race between Fetterman and Oz is ongoing

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The claim: Mehmet Oz won the race for a US Senate seat in Pennsylvania

The race for Pennsylvania's open U.S. Senate seat has become one of the most closely watched in the nation, with Republican candidate and celebrity doctor Mehmet Oz facing Democratic candidate John Fetterman, the state’s lieutenant governor.

Oz may have recently narrowed the gap in the polls between him and Fetterman, but a video shared on Facebook goes a step further by claiming Oz has already won.

“‘HE LEFT THE RACE’ Trump has VICTORY laugh after Fetterman BEGS to join ‘Trumper’ … Dr. Oz wins SEAT," reads the caption of the Oct. 5 video, which had gained more than 50 shares and 130 comments in two days.

But the claim is false for multiple reasons.

The general election hasn’t happened yet – it’s not until Nov. 8. Fetterman hasn’t left the race, as he has been actively campaigning and raising money.

The 27-minute video doesn't ever actually claim Oz defeated Fetterman. Instead, it's a portion of a Newsmax broadcast that briefly mentions the race.

USA TODAY reached out to the user who shared the post for comment.

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Fetterman still holds lead in polls, but race has tightened

Fetterman still had a 6-point lead over Oz in a USA TODAY/Suffolk University poll released this week, but that’s closer than the 9-point lead Fetterman had in June. The tightening race has garnered national attention with control of the Senate potentially on the line.

Fetterman was temporarily forced off the campaign trail in May when he suffered a stroke days before his state’s primary election. He started campaigning again in August and in the last three months has raised $22 million, the most raised in a single quarter by a Senate candidate in Pennsylvania, The Hill reported.

Oz, meanwhile, raised $17.2 million over the last three months, including a $7 million personal loan. He has run a deluge of TV ads portraying Fetterman as too liberal for Pennsylvania, USA TODAY reported. The two are expected to debate on Oct. 25.

USA TODAY has debunked multiple false claims about Oz, including an altered photo that purported to show him kissing Donald Trump’s Hollywood star and another altered photo that appeared to show him posed for a photo with a rotated campaign sign that says "NO."

Our rating: False

Based on our research, we rate FALSE the claim that Oz won the race for a U.S. Senate seat in Pennsylvania. The general election won't happen until Nov. 8. Both candidates have been actively campaigning and fundraising with the race tightening in the polls.

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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Fact check: Fetterman, Oz still squaring off in race for US Senate