When Donald Trump endorsed Mehmet Oz in Pennsylvania's Republican primary for U.S. Senate, many pundits began wondering whether the former president's backing would put the celebrity surgeon and former TV host ahead as the front-runner in one of the most-watched and most expensive Senate races in the country.
Recent polls show Oz did get a small bump from Trump's endorsement, with a Franklin & Marshall College poll last week showing him 2 percentage points ahead of former hedge fund CEO David McCormick.
But Oz is still polling at only 18% of voter support, while 39% of GOP voters surveyed are still undecided about who they will vote for in just over a week's time, according to the poll.
Even some of Trump's most dedicated supporters — many of whom waited hours in the rain and mud Friday night at the Westmoreland Fairgrounds in Greensburg to see him speak — haven't yet been won over by Oz.
Luann Minnick, 61, of Mt. Lebanon, said before Friday's rally that she still wanted to hear why Trump endorsed him.
"At first, I wasn't going to vote for him, but maybe after today, I will," Minnick said.
"I didn't think [Oz] was a true Republican, that maybe he was a RINO," she added, referring to less-conservative GOP politicians often derided as being Republicans In Name Only. "I didn't want him in there."
That opinion was common among the Pennsylvania voters who the Post-Gazette spoke with prior to Trump's rally: Voters still wanted to find out what exactly Oz believes.
"Dr. Oz is a very good man, but he's kind of gone back and forth on some issues," said Leroy Kinnan, 47, of Latrobe. "People have the right to change, of course, but I want to find out where he is and where his heart lies on some things.
"Saying something to get elected versus what you do in office is very different," Kinnan added. "Trump kept all his promises. That's a big deal to us, especially in Western Pennsylvania. We've got a lot on the line right now."
Trump has said Oz is the GOP's "best chance" to win Pennsylvania's U.S. Senate race in the fall. He's highlighted Oz's fan base among women, who were his audience for his long-running daytime TV show.
"Dr. Oz, I've known him a long time; his show is great," Trump said Friday night. "He's on that screen, he's in the bedrooms of all those women, telling them good and bad, and they love him."
Kelli George, 52, of Homestead, said she didn't consider Oz until Trump endorsed him. After that, she "took a harder look" at Oz. She's now supporting him for the upcoming primary.
"It makes sense that someone has to win in the fall in November, and I'm sorry, but these more conservative people aren't going to be able to do it, and we're going to end up with [Democratic front-runner Lt. Gov. John Fetterman]."
But others were more cautious.
"We don't have much faith in celebrities," Ed Miller, 61, of Hempfield, said of Oz before Friday's rally.
Miller said he'd listen to Oz's speech but wouldn't make his decision for another couple of days. He said he'd wait until about a week before the May 17 election.
Perhaps what could be more impactful in shaping the race: Trump's comments about McCormick.
Trump spent more time during his hour-and-a-half-long speech Friday criticizing McCormick than he did praising Oz, who he was ostensibly in town to promote.
The recent F&M poll showed McCormick, at 16%, is neck-and-neck with Oz for the polling lead.
Trump likened McCormick to U.S. Sen. Pat Toomey, Pennsylvania's retiring Republican senator who candidates are running to replace.
"[McCormick] may be a nice guy, but he's not MAGA," Trump said. "He's more Toomey than he is MAGA."
Trump also celebrated his recent success with J.D. Vance, the Republican nominee for Ohio's open U.S. Senate seat.
Vance, a venture capitalist and the author of "Hillbilly Elegy," won his primary election last week, which he credited to Trump's endorsement.
Vance, who spoke during Friday's rally, urged the crowd to support Trump's other endorsed candidates, like Oz, so voters can show party bosses that Trump is still the leader of the Republican Party.
