Pennsylvania Lt. Gov. John Fetterman, who is leading the pack in the state’s Democratic Senate primary, suffered a stroke on Friday.
Fetterman, who has a 30-point lead over his primary opponents according to a Real Clear Politics average, revealed his sudden medical troubles in a statement Sunday, saying that he had gone to the hospital for a check-up after he began feeling ill. The 52-year-old lieutenant governor said that he “hadn’t been feeling well, but was so focused on the campaign that I ignored the signs and just kept going.”
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The Senate hopeful went on to say that he had a stroke “caused by a clot from my heart being in an A-fib rhythm for too long.” Luckily, he added, “the amazing doctors here were able to quickly and completely remove the clot, reversing the stroke.” Fetterman said that doctors told him he did not suffer any cognitive damage and was on his way to a full recovery. Still, he will need to take some time away from campaigning to recover, and doctors have kept him hospitalized to continue observation.
“The doctors have assured me that I’ll be able to get back on the trail, but first I need to take a minute, get some rest, and recover,” his statement read. “There’s so much at stake in this race, and I’m going to be ready for the hard fight ahead.”
Fetterman, a progressive, faces his toughest primary challenge from Rep. Conor Lamb (D-P.A.), a 37-year-old who has campaigned as a moderate. Still, the race is nowhere near as close as on the Republican side, where more than $50 million has been spent on negative advertising alone. Should Fetterman win his primary as is expected, he will face off against the GOP nominee in a race that will help decide control of the Senate, which is currently split 50-50.
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The Washington Examiner has reached out to Fetterman’s campaign for comment.
