This week, the Democratic candidate for a Pennsylvania U.S. Senate seat raised $500,000 in just 24 hours. how? Eating grits by mocking his opponent.
In a video that went viral recently, Republican candidate and TV personality Dr. Oz (full name Mehmet Oz) was walking around a Pennsylvania grocery store, pointing at Vegetables say how inflation is making lettuce add up too expensive.
“Guys, lettuce costs $20, and that’s not including the tequila,” Dr. Oz said in a video originally posted in April. “I mean this is outrageous! We have Joe Biden to thank for that.”
Also, while visiting the Wegmans store, Oz mispronounced its name, calling it ” Wegners” – apparently combining its name with rival chain Redner’s.
On Monday, Democratic candidate and current Lt. Gov. John Fettman responded to the video on Twitter, saying, “In Pennsylvania, we call it… a vegetable tray. Soon after, he offered a “limited-edition” sticker to anyone who donated to his campaign. The sticker shows the word “Wegners” in a font similar to Wegmans, along with the motto “Let’s Eat Lettuce”.
Of the $500,000 it raised, more than $65,000 came from Sticker Drive, according to Feltman’s press office.
“John actually understands what it’s like to go grocery shopping and see prices go up,” Feltman’s campaign manager Brendanke Phillips said in a release. Oz’s campaign did not respond to Fortune’s request for comment.
The match between Feltman and Oz was one of the high-profile campaigns in this mid-season. With the Senate currently split between the two parties, Vice President Kamala Harris’ vote tipped the balance of power in favor of Democrats. The outcome of just a few games could change the majority in the opposite way.
Feltman’s viral moment also comes as high prices across the country appear to be peaking. The latest consumer price index from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics showed no net month-on-month price growth in July, with inflation falling to 8.5% year over year after hitting a four-year peak of 9.1% in June.
Recent polls show that inflation remains a core concern for voters ahead of the midterm elections. A June poll by the Associated Press/NORC Center for Public Affairs Research found that 40 percent of Americans ranked it as a government priority for the coming year. It topped a Kaiser Family Foundation poll earlier this month.
When Oz posted his video, the latest figures showed inflation at 7.9% and expected to keep climbing.
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