The 1988 United States Senate election in Montana took place on November 8, 1988. Incumbent United States Senator John Melcher, who was first elected to the Senate in 1976 and was re-elected in 1982, ran for re-election. After winning the Democratic primary, he faced Yellowstone County Commissioner Conrad Burns in the general election, and a grueling campaign followed. Ultimately, Melcher was narrowly defeated in his bid for re-election by Burns, who became the first Republican Senator from Montana in 36 years since Zales Ecton lost re-election in 1952.
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 County results Burns: 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% Melcher: 50–60% 60–70% | |||||||||||||||||
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Democratic primary
editCandidates
edit- John Melcher, incumbent U.S. Senator
- Bob Kelleher, perennial candidate
Results
edit| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | John Melcher (incumbent) | 88,457 | 74.54 | |
| Democratic | Bob Kelleher | 30,212 | 25.46 | |
| Total votes | 118,669 | 100.00 | ||
Republican primary
editCandidates
edit- Conrad Burns, Yellowstone County Commissioner
- Tom Faranda
Results
edit| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Conrad Burns | 63,330 | 84.71 | |
| Republican | Tom Faranda | 11,427 | 15.29 | |
| Total votes | 74,757 | 100.00 | ||
General election
editResults
edit| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Conrad Burns | 189,445 | 51.87% | +10.20% | |
| Democratic | John Melcher (incumbent) | 175,809 | 48.13% | −6.33% | |
| Majority | 13,636 | 3.73% | −9.06% | ||
| Turnout | 365,254 | ||||
| Republican gain from Democratic | Swing | ||||
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ a b "Report of the Official Canvass of the Vote Cast at the Primary Election Held in the State of Montana, June 7, 1988" (PDF). Montana Secretary of State. Archived from the original (PDF) on December 28, 2013. Retrieved July 2, 2014.
- ^ "Statistics of the Presidential and Congressional Election of November 8, 1988" (PDF). Clerk of the United States House of Representatives. Retrieved July 2, 2014.
| Preceded by 1982 |
Montana U.S. Senate elections 1988 |
Succeeded by 1994 |