Fetterman’s Bold Social Media Presence Rescued his Campaign from Ruin

John Fetterman, the 2022 Democratic nominee for US Senate in Pennsylvania. Courtesy of Flickr.

Notorious among pollsters and pundits for its electoral unpredictability in statewide races, Pennsylvania has a surprisingly consistent record of electing Republican U.S. Senators. In fact, in the 19 regular Pennsylvania Senate elections since 1964, voters have elected a Democrat only three times: in 2006, 2012, and 2018 (the same candidate, Bob Casey, won in each of these elections). Combined with Pennsylvania’s centrist electorate, and a long history of the President’s party losing seats in midterm elections, it's presumable that even the most moderate of Democratic Senate candidates in Pennsylvania would face an uphill climb to victory in 2022. 

Yet it’s a tight race between the Trump-endorsed Republican Mehmet Oz, a TV doctor and former host of The Dr. Oz Show, and John Fetterman, the state’s current Lieutenant Governor and former mayor of Braddock, PA. Since clinching their nominations, the two candidates have made an effort to attract broad support by appealing to moderates across the state. But John Fetterman, at least, is no moderate. His platform includes a number of progressive policies, including the federal legalization of marijuana, a $15 minimum wage, and universal healthcare. In a normal Pennsylvanian election, such brazen progressivism would have easily been any Democratic nominee’s greatest obstacle to victory. But 2022 had an even greater obstacle in store for Fetterman: on May 13, he suffered a stroke.

Even in the face of  Fetterman’s progressive platform, unfavorable electoral environment, and unique health challenges, his campaign’s bold social media strategy has managed to save the Democratic candidate from certain defeat, and has even given him a fighting chance in a race that has defied modern political expectations.

Fetterman’s stroke effectively halted all in-person campaigning from the candidate himself and forced the campaign to overhaul its strategy on a dime. Such an abrupt switch in strategy harkened back to the days of the 2020 Presidential election, when presumptive nominee Joe Biden moved his campaign online amidst the onset of the COVID-19 epidemic. But Fetterman, unlike Biden, wasn’t holding virtual town halls or meeting with voters. Instead, the campaign compensated by releasing a near-constant stream of short videos and memes on its TikTok and Twitter pages, trolling Oz for his exorbitant wealth, his New Jersey origins, and his general ignorance of Pennsylvanian culture. 

In one video, Fetterman mocks Oz’s use of the pretentious-sounding “crudité,” referring to an earlier ad where Oz attempted to demonstrate the supposed inflationary effects of Democratic policies. Completely sidestepping Oz’s jab at inflation, Fetterman holds up what he more colloquially refers to as a “veggie tray,” demonstrating that while Oz is not in touch with the people of Pennsylvania, Fetterman is. The video raised $500,000 in one day. In another ad, a clip of Oz claiming he only owns two houses is cut together with a montage of the TV doctor’s 10 luxurious residences across a multitude of states and countries, ending, at last, with his most recently purchased home in the Philadelphia suburbs.

These videos successfully spurred doubt regarding Oz’s ability to sufficiently represent the working-class people of Pennsylvania, a demographic with whom Oz has so vehemently tried to connect through his anti-inflationary platform. Moreover, the comedic nature of the ads, trolling Oz for being blatantly out-of-touch, enabled Fetterman’s attacks to spread beyond just the followers of his social media accounts. The videos often garnered hundreds of thousands of views and likes, spreading themselves free of charge. They became topics of discussion in the media. They emphasized the ridiculousness of Oz’s populist message by juxtaposing his man-of-the-people façade with the reality of his exorbitant wealth, all while shifting the conversation away from Fetterman’s progressive policy positions. 

In short, the strategy proved immensely effective during Fetterman’s recovery. A look at polling trends across Senate races shows that as Fetterman’s campaign began to ramp up its social media strategy, Fetterman himself went from maintaining a steady single-digit lead over Oz to dramatically outperforming his counterparts in swing states like Georgia and Nevada. In the months of July and early August when the campaign was relying solely on social media presence to stay afloat, Fetterman’s numbers remained consistent or increased, while Oz’s declined significantly. This change came as Fetterman’s ads gained national attention online and in the media, where conversation about the race was shifted to Oz’s flaws as conveyed in the videos.

Since Fetterman has returned to the campaign trail after his recovery, his lead over Oz has collapsed, decreasing from a 12 point lead at the height of August to a virtual toss-up in the days leading up to November 8. Declining support for his campaign may be a consequence of the visible impacts of his stroke. In a live debate in late October, Fetterman displayed some minor difficulties communicating his positions (a side effect quite common among stroke survivors). Post-debate, media outlets across the ideological spectrum have widely speculated about Fetterman’s ability to serve, and the conversation seems unlikely to be dispelled prior to election day on November 8. 

With Fetterman’s return to a regular campaign schedule, his campaign’s ability to control the narrative with a well-placed ad has all but dissolved. The campaign’s bold social media strategy undoubtedly saved Fetterman from electoral ruin during those months when the candidate was unable to engage with voters. But now, with the end in sight, Fetterman and his campaign team are left to wonder if such a strategy will be enough to carry them to victory.

Garrett Spirnock is a Staff Writer for the Columbia Political Review and a sophomore in Columbia College studying Political Science.