United States Senate election in Vermont, 2006
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Vermont Senate election of 2006 was held on November 7, 2006, and was won by independent candidate Bernie Sanders. Sanders was elected to represent Vermont in the United States Senate from January 3, 2007 to January 3, 2013. Sanders defeated Republican nominee Richard Tarrant with 68 percent of the vote.[1] CNN called the race in Sanders' favor shortly after 7 p.m. on the day of the election.[2]
The election was held to fill the seat of independent Senator Jim Jeffords, formerly a Republican, who decided to retire rather than seek a fourth term.
Tarrant won the September 12, 2006 Republican primary. Sanders, then the sole independent member of the U.S. House, won a five-way race in the Democratic primary, but said he would decline the Democratic nomination under an agreement he made with the party in January. Sanders appeared on the November ballot as an independent.[3]
Contents |
[edit] Candidates
[edit] Democratic Party
- Bernie Sanders — won the Democratic endorsement to run as a Democrat, but declined the nomination, leaving no Democratic nominee on the ballot. This victory ensured that no Democrat would appear on the general election ballot to split the vote with Sanders, an ally of the Democrats, who has been supported by leaders in the Democratic Party.
[edit] Defeated in the Democratic primary
- Larry Drown — 2004 Democratic Congressional (House) nominee, former trustee of Northfield Village, and frequent candidate[4]
- Craig Hill (Green) — marketing consultant and 2004 nominee[5]
- Peter D. Moss
- Louis W. Thabault
[edit] Republican Party
- Richard Tarrant — a businessman and philanthropist.
[edit] Defeated in the Republican primary
- Cris Ericson
- Greg Parke
[edit] Green Party
- Craig Hill — 2004 Senate nominee
[edit] Liberty Union Party
- Peter "Pete" Diamondstone — socialist activist and frequent candidate.
[edit] Independents and minor parties
- Bernie Sanders — Vermont's At-Large Congressman; former mayor of Burlington
- Cris Ericson — marijuana activist
- Peter D. Moss — 2004 Republican Senate candidate
- Steve Moyer — software engineer and 2000 candidate[6]
[edit] Support for Sanders from the Democratic Party
Since Sanders is allied with the Democrats in the House of Representatives, Democratic leadership successfully dissuaded any serious challengers from their party. Sanders was endorsed by prominent Democrats such as DNC Chairman and former Vermont Governor Howard Dean, Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid, and Senator Chuck Schumer of New York, the chairman of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee. On February 13, 2005 Sanders received an endorsement from Democracy for America, the political action committee that was founded by Dean after he withdrew from the 2004 Presidential race.[7]
[edit] General campaign
In mid-August 2006, the campaign heated up considerably, with Tarrant fully engaged in heavy media advertising, most of which criticized Sanders' public stances. Tarrant ran several ads accusing Sanders of representing himself differently from his voting record in the House of Representatives, citing such examples as Sanders' votes against Amber Alert and against increased penalties for child pornography. Sanders responded with an ad stating that Tarrant's claims are "dishonest" and "distort my record" and presented what he viewed as more accurate explations of his voting record.
[edit] Campaign finance data
The election was the most expensive political campaign in Vermont history.[1] Tarrant did not seek outside funding, raising 98% of all funds through personal sources, for a total of $7,315,854. [8] Sanders' top contributors include the plaintiff's law firm Barron & Budd, Operating Engineers Union, Laborers Union, and Communication Workers of America, for total raised of $ 5,554,466.[9] In total, Tarrant and Sanders spent $13,771,060.[8] Tarrant spent $85 per vote, the largest cost per vote of any race in the country during 2006, while Sanders spent $34 per vote.[10]
[edit] Polling
| Source | Date | Sanders (I) | Tarrant (R) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Research 2000 | October 23-24, 2006 | 57% | 36% |
| Research 2000 | September 18-19, 2006 | 58% | 33% |
| American Research Group | September 15, 2006 | 55% | 40% |
| Rasmussen | August 3, 2006 | 62% | 34% |
| American Research Group | July 27, 2006 | 56% | 35% |
| Rasmussen | June 16, 2006 | 67% | 29% |
| Research 2000 | May 11, 2006 | 61% | 24% |
| Doyle Poll | March 7, 2006 | 62% | 26% |
| Rasmussen | January 5, 2006 | 70% | 25% |
| Research 2000 | November 1, 2005 | 64% | 16% |
[edit] Election results
Official results from the Vermont Secretary of State [1]:
| 2006 United States Senate election, Vermont | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
| Independent | Bernie Sanders | 171,638 | 65.4 | n/a | |
| Republican | Richard Tarrant | 84,924 | 32.3 | -33.2 | |
| Independent | Cris Ericson | 1,735 | 0.6 | n/a | |
| Green | Craig Hill | 1,536 | 0.5 | n/a | |
| Independent | Peter D. Moss | 1,518 | 0.5 | n/a | |
| Liberty Union | Peter Diamondstone | 801 | 0.3 | -0.2 | |
| Write-ins | 267 | 0.1 | 0 | ||
| Majority | 86,741 | 33.1 | |||
| Turnout | 262,419 | ||||
| Independent hold | Swing | ||||
Sanders won a majority of the votes in every county in the state.
[edit] See also
- United States Senate elections, 2006
- Vermont United States House of Representatives election, 2006
- Vermont gubernatorial election, 2006
[edit] External links
- Vermont Secretary of State's Draft list of candidates (Excel spreadsheet). (Final version due to be released on July 24, 2006).
[edit] References
- ^ a b Ring, Wilson. "Sanders, Welch are winners in Vermont", The Boston Globe, Associated Press, 2006-11-07. Retrieved on 2007-01-25.
- ^ "CNN projects Sanders, Lugar wins in Indiana, Vermont Senate races", CNN, 2006-11-07. Retrieved on 2007-02-03.
- ^ "U.S. Senate: Tarrant-Sanders duel set", Burlington Free Press, September 12, 2006.
- ^ new england skiing benson barton at drownforvermont.com
- ^ Hill Senate Now
- ^ Steve Moyer for U.S. Senate
- ^ "DFA Backs Sanders and Welch", WCAX, 2006-02-13. Retrieved on 2007-02-03.
- ^ a b Congressional Races - 2006 Vermont Senate. Opensecrets.org. Center for Responsive Politics (2007-02-02). Retrieved on 2007-02-03.
- ^ Vermont Senate: 2006 Race Profile - Top Contributors. Opensecrets.org. Center for Responsive Politics (2006-12-11). Retrieved on 2007-02-03.
- ^ Ottenhoff, Patrick. "What's the value of a vote", MSNBC, 2007-01-31.
| Preceded by 2004 Patrick Leahy (D) |
Vermont U.S. Senate elections 2006 Bernie Sanders (I) |
Succeeded by 2010 |
