Was U.S. Sen. John Fetterman expelled from the Democratic party in early May 2025? No, that's not true: A widely-shared video offered in-depth opinions on the Pennsylvania senator's complex and changing relationship with the party, but no evidence to support the striking claim that he had been "officially kicked out." The video came after a New York magazine feature article raised concerns about Fetterman's mental and physical health.
The claim appeared in a May 6, 2025, video on YouTube (archived here), which bore the title "John Fetterman KICKED OUT of Democrat Party". The opening words of the speaker, Brandon Lehman, were unequivocal:
So the Democrats have officially kicked John Fetterman out of their party...
The video can be viewed below:
In reality, Democrats had not expelled or "officially kicked out" Fetterman, as of May 8, 2025.
On the official website of the U.S. Senate, Fetterman was still listed as a Democrat, and the Pennsylvania state Democratic party still listed him as one its "elected leaders."
No trace or mention of any expulsion could be found on the website of the Democratic party, nor on its X, Facebook or Instagram accounts. On May 8, Fetterman's own official website published a press release which referred to him as a Democrat, and his X, Facebook and Instagram profiles contained no mention of any expulsion.
In the video, Lehman referred extensively to a May 2 article published by New York magazine, which outlined previously undisclosed details about Fetterman's ongoing physical and mental health struggles.
Lehman described the article as a "smear piece", suggesting that it gave an inaccurate picture of Fetterman's fitness for office, and was part of a deliberate effort by Democrats to push him to the margins of the party and beyond, for ideological reasons.
Lehman did not provide concrete evidence to support the claim of a coordinated party campaign against Fetterman, nor to disprove the factual claims made about Fetterman's health, in the article.
However, setting that aside, there is a significant difference between, on the one hand, claiming that the Democratic party was attempting to marginalize Fetterman and, on the other hand, claiming -- in the title and opening words of a widely-shared YouTube video -- that they had "officially" expelled him.
They had not, and that attention-grabbing headline claim was false.
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For previous Lead Stories debunks related to John Fetterman, click here.
