The 1996 United States Senate special election in Oregon was held on January 30, 1996, to fill the seat vacated by Republican Bob Packwood, who had resigned from the Senate due to sexual misconduct allegations. Governor at the time John Kitzhaber did not appoint anyone to temporarily fill in Packwood's shoes and called for a special election on January 30, 1996.
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 County results Wyden: 40–50% 50–60% 60–70% Smith: 40-50% 50-60% 60-70% 70-80% | |||||||||||||||||
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In the primaries held on December 5, 1995, Democratic U.S. Representative Ron Wyden and Republican President of the Oregon State Senate Gordon H. Smith were nominated. Wyden then defeated Smith in the general election.[1] Smith would win the regularly-scheduled election to the Senate later that year and serve alongside Wyden until 2009. Wyden's victory made him the first Democratic senator from Oregon since 1969, after Wayne Morse very narrowly lost re-election to Packwood.
Democratic primary
editCandidates
edit- Peter DeFazio, U.S. Representative[2]
- Michael Donnelly, businessman and President of Wild Oregon Water[3]
- Anna Nevenic, nurse and perennial candidate[4]
- J.J.T. Van Dooremolen
- Ron Wyden, U.S. Representative[5]
Results
edit
Wyden
- 30–40%
- 40–50%
- 50–60%
- 60–70%
DeFazio
- 40–50%
- 50–60%
- 60–70%
- 70–80%
- 80–90%
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Ron Wyden | 212,532 | 49.46% | |
| Democratic | Peter DeFazio | 187,411 | 43.61% | |
| Democratic | Anna Nevenic | 11,201 | 2.61% | |
| Democratic | Michael Donnelly | 8,340 | 1.94% | |
| Democratic | Write-in Candidates | 7,959 | 1.85% | |
| Democratic | J.J.T. Van Dooremolen | 2,279 | 0.53% | |
| Plurality | 25,121 | 5.85% | ||
| Total votes | 429,722 | 100.00% | ||
Republican primary
editCandidates
edit- Sam Berry, attorney[7]
- Brian Boquist, businessman and rancher[8]
- Jeffrey Brady, dentist[9]
- Valentine Christian, candidate for the U.S. Senate in 1992
- Robert J. Fenton
- Lex Loeb
- Norma Paulus, Oregon Superintendent of Public Instruction, former Oregon Secretary of State, and nominee for Governor of Oregon in 1986[10]
- Jack Roberts, Commissioner of the Oregon Bureau of Labor and Industries[11]
- Gordon H. Smith, President of the Oregon State Senate[12]
- John Thomas, policeman[13]
- Tony G. Zangaro
Results
edit
Smith
- 50–60%
- 60–70%
- 70–80%
- 80–90%
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Gordon H. Smith | 246,060 | 63.63 | |
| Republican | Norma Paulus | 98,158 | 25.38 | |
| Republican | Jack Roberts | 29,687 | 7.68 | |
| Republican | John Thomas | 3,272 | 0.85 | |
| Republican | Brian Boquist | 3,228 | 0.84 | |
| Republican | Tony G. Zangaro | 1,638 | 0.42 | |
| Republican | Sam Berry | 1,426 | 0.37 | |
| Republican | Jeffrey Brady | 1,160 | 0.3 | |
| Republican | Valentine Christian | 943 | 0.24 | |
| Republican | Robert J. Fenton | 632 | 0.16 | |
| Republican | Lex Loeb | 508 | 0.13 | |
| Majority | 147,902 | 38.25% | ||
| Total votes | 386,712 | 100 | ||
General election
editResults
edit| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Ron Wyden | 571,739 | 47.78% | |
| Republican | Gordon H. Smith | 553,519 | 46.26% | |
| American Independent | Karen Shilling | 25,597 | 2.14% | |
| Libertarian | Gene Nanni | 15,698 | 1.31% | |
| Independent | Write-In Candidates | 14,958 | 1.25% | |
| Socialist | Vickie Valdez | 7,872 | 0.66% | |
| Pacific Green | Lou Gold | 7,225 | 0.60% | |
| Plurality | 18,220 | 1.52% | ||
| Total votes | 1,196,608 | 100.0% | ||
| Democratic gain from Republican | ||||
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ "Our Campaigns - OR US Senate - Special Election Race - Jan 30, 1996".
- ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on November 21, 2018. Retrieved November 20, 2018.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on November 21, 2018. Retrieved November 20, 2018.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on November 21, 2018. Retrieved November 20, 2018.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on November 21, 2018. Retrieved November 20, 2018.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - ^ "Our Campaigns - OR US Senate - Special D Primary Race - Dec 05, 1995".
- ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on November 21, 2018. Retrieved November 20, 2018.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on November 21, 2018. Retrieved November 20, 2018.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on November 21, 2018. Retrieved November 20, 2018.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on November 21, 2018. Retrieved November 20, 2018.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on November 21, 2018. Retrieved November 20, 2018.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on November 21, 2018. Retrieved November 20, 2018.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on November 21, 2018. Retrieved November 20, 2018.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - ^ "Our Campaigns - OR US Senate - Special R Primary Race - Dec 05, 1995".
- ^ "Content Manager WebDrawer - 1996 Special Election Official Results".