United States Senate election in Michigan, 2000

United States Senate election in Michigan, 2000
November 7, 2000

 
Nominee Debbie Stabenow Spencer Abraham
Party Democratic Republican
Popular vote 2,061,952 1,994,693
Percentage 49.5% 47.9%
U.S. Senator before election

Spencer Abraham
Republican

 Elected U.S. Senator

Debbie Stabenow
Democratic

The 2000 United States Senate election in Michigan was held on November 7, 2000. Incumbent Republican U.S. Senator Spencer Abraham ran for re-election to a second term, but was defeated by his Democratic opponent, congresswoman Debbie Stabenow. Stabenow subsequently made history as the first woman to represent Michigan in the U.S. Senate.

Candidates

Democratic

Republican

Green

  • Matthew Abel

Libertarian

  • Michael Corliss

Reform

  • Mark Forton

Constitution

  • John Mangopoulos

Natural Law

  • William Quarton

Campaign

Abraham, who was first elected in the 1994 Republican Revolution despite never running for public office before, was considered vulnerable by the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee. Major issues in the campaign included prescription drugs for the elderly.[1] By September 4, Abraham still had failed to reach 50% in polls despite having spent over $6 million on television ads.[2] In mid-October, he came back and reached 50% and 49% in two polls respectively.[3]

Debates

Results

The election was very close with Stabenow prevailing by just over 67,000 votes. Stabenow was also likely helped by the fact that Al Gore won Michigan on the presidential level. Ultimately, Stabenow pulled out huge numbers out of the Democratic stronghold of Wayne County, which covers the Detroit Metropolitan Area. Stabenow also performed well in other heavily populated areas such as Ingham County home to the state's capital of Lansing, and the college town of Ann Arbor. Abraham did not concede right after major news networks declared Stabenow the winner; He held out hope that the few outstanding precincts could push him over the edge. At 4:00AM, Abraham conceded defeat. Senator Abraham called Stabenow and congratulated her on her victory. A historic election, Stabenow became the first woman to represent Michigan in the United States Senate.

General election results[4]
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Democratic Debbie Stabenow 2,061,952 49.47
Republican Spencer Abraham (Incumbent) 1,994,693 47.86
Green Matthew Abel 37,542 0.90
Libertarian Michael Corliss 29,966 0.72
Reform Mark Forton 26,274 0.63
Constitution John Mangopoulos 11,628 0.28
Natural Law William Quarton 5,630 0.14
Majority 67,259 1.61
Turnout 4,165,685
Democratic gain from Republican Swing -4.02

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Breaking News, Analysis, Politics, Blogs, News Photos, Video, Tech Reviews - TIME.com". Time. October 14, 2000.
  2. ↑ "Congress Races Test Coattails". Newsday. September 4, 2000.
  3. ↑ https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=Dz8iAAAAIBAJ&sjid=sqwFAAAAIBAJ&pg=3886,3871152&dq=debbie+stabenow&hl=en
  4. ↑ Trandahl, Jeff (June 21, 2001). "STATISTICS OF THE PRESIDENTIAL AND CONGRESSIONAL ELECTION OF NOVEMBER 7, 2000". CLERK OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES.
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