Pennsylvania Lt. Gov. Fetterman teases 2022 U.S. Senate run

(The Center Square) – Pennsylvania’s second in command this week teased another bid to fill U.S. Sen. Pat Toomey’s seat when the Republican steps down in 2022.

Lt. Gov. John Fetterman revealed he may vie for the coveted seat in the next round of midterm elections – likely to be a referendum on President-elect Joe Biden’s policies – in an interview The Philadelphia Inquirer.

“The 2022 cycle in Pennsylvania is going to be one of the most, if not the most, important races,” he told the newspaper Thursday.

Fetterman made headlines earlier this week when Senate Republicans voted him out of the chamber for a day after he tried to seat Sen. Jim Brewster, D-Monroeville. President Pro Tempore Jake Corman, R-Bellefonte, blocked Brewster’s swearing-in after his November opponent filed a last-minute challenge to the election results in his district.

He’s also a vocal proponent of legalizing recreational marijuana and has recently appeared on national cable networks where he admonished the president’s claims of widespread voter fraud. He’ also known for goading pro-Trump lawmakers into social media brawls.

“Every one of PA’s 67 counties matter,” he tweeted Friday as news of his potential run circulated.

He went on to describe, in broad strokes, an agenda committed to rebuilding blighted neighborhoods, “re-imagining” criminal justice reform and ending the “war on drugs.”

“Pennsylvania needs a United States senator that knows this is true, too,” he said.

Fetterman likely joins a crowded field of potential Democratic candidates that is rumored to include former State Treasurer Joe Torsella, U.S. Rep. Conor Lamb and state Sen. Sharif Street.

It’s also not the first time Fetterman campaigned for the seat, having lost the 2016 primary election to Katie McGinty.

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