U.S. Senate candidate Kathy Barnette took first place in a recent Pennsylvania straw poll over other Republican candidates, including Mehmet Oz and David McCormick. The poll, taken at the Pennsylvania Leadership Conference held March 31 to April 2, 2022, in Harrisburg, provided a glimpse of conservative voter preferences ahead of the state’s May 17 primary. State Sen. Doug Mastriano and Bill McSwain, former U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, tied for first place in the poll for governor. Lowman Henry, president and CEO of the Pennsylvania Leadership Council—which runs the conference—said this is the first time since 1958 that Pennsylvania has had an open seat for both governor and the U.S. Senate in the same year. There were 785 people at the PLC conference, the second-largest attendance in its 31-year history. Henry said he believes interest in the governor’s race is behind the strong turnout. “Until 2020 happened, not …