Pennsylvania Lt. Gov. John Fetterman and Dr. Oz to square off in Senate debate on Tuesday

Pennsylvania voters will get their first chance Tuesday to see Democratic Lt. Gov. John Fetterman and Republican Mehmet Oz face off when the Senate rivals engage in their sole debate ahead of the general election.

With control of the U.S. Senate potentially on the line, Fetterman is hoping for a strong performance to burnish his everyman image and fend off tough questions about his health after a near-fatal stroke in May. Oz wants to dispel concerns that he is an out-of-touch carpet bagger from neighboring New Jersey with few ties to the Keystone State.

The debate will be held at 8 p.m. EDT on Tuesday in the Harrisburg studio of an ABC television station.

Dr. Mehmet Oz (Mark Makela/)

Fetterman, who stands 6-foot-8 and wears a trademark hoodie on the campaign trail to stress his roots in working-class western Pennsylvania, uses questions about his health to portray himself as better able to relate to the problems of average Pennsylvania voters.

Oz, a heart surgeon-turned-TV celebrity who has treated stroke patients, has accused Fetterman of lying about his health and suggested that the stroke has left Fetterman unequipped to serve effectively in the Senate. The Democrat will be using a closed-caption translation of the debate, as his stroke has left him with audio-processing difficulties.

It remains to be seen how voters will react to seeing Fetterman use the technological aid, or if he stumbles over some words as he did in a recent interview.

“Dr. Oz never lets me forget that I had a strok,.” the lieutenant governor said. “In January, I’ll be feeling much better. But Dr. Oz will still be a fraud.”

Pennsylvania Lt. Gov. John Fetterman (MARK MAKELA/)

With Sen. Pat Toomey (R-Pa.) retiring, it’s the only seat held by a Republican in which Democrats are favored to flip, but it’s by no means a done deal.

“It’s pretty straightforward. The core battlefield is Pennsylvania, Georgia and Nevada,” said Jacob Rubashkin, an analyst with Inside Elections. “Whichever party wins two of those three will likely control the Senate.”

Dr. Oz mocked for 'crudite' grocery shopping trip

“It ain’t over until it’s over,” President Biden said of his party’s prospects in the Senate.

The general election is on Tuesday, Nov. 8.