Senator John Fetterman of Pennsylvania, who had a stroke during his campaign last year, remains hospitalized and is undergoing tests after feeling lightheaded. So far, the tests have been negative for another stroke or seizure, according to a statement by his communications director, Joe Calvello. The MRI at George Washington University Hospital and other tests ruled out a new stroke. Fetterman is being monitored with an electroencephalogram (EEG) for signs of a seizure. Although there are no signs of a seizure at this time, he is still being monitored. There is no indication of when he may be released from the hospital, but he is said to be in good spirits and communicating with his staff and family.
In November 2022, Senator Fetterman, who previously served as lieutenant governor, won the seat previously held by Republican Pat Toomey. He defeated the GOP nominee, Mehmet Oz, by a margin of 5 percentage points, flipping a key seat and helping the Democrats retain their majority in the Senate. The race was the most expensive Senate campaign in history, with over $300 million spent.
Senator Fetterman’s campaign was disrupted in May of 2022 when he suffered a near-fatal stroke just before the Democratic primary. He underwent surgery to implant a pacemaker with a defibrillator to treat atrial fibrillation and cardiomyopathy and spent much of the summer recovering. Despite pressure from his opponent, he refused to release his medical records or allow his doctors to speak to the media. He insisted that he would make a full recovery, which his doctors confirmed.
As a result of his stroke, Senator Fetterman has been struggling with auditory processing disorder, a common after-effect of a stroke that can leave a person with difficulty speaking fluently and processing spoken conversation quickly. This was evident during the fall campaign’s only debate, where he struggled to complete sentences and jumbled words. On election night, he declared his run was for “anyone who ever got knocked down but got back up.” He served as the lieutenant governor from 2019 to 2023 and as the mayor of Braddock, Pennsylvania from 2006 to 2019.
