1996 United States Senate election in Montana

The 1996 United States Senate election in Montana took place on November 5, 1996. Incumbent United States Senator Max Baucus, who was first elected in 1978 and was re-elected in 1984 and 1990, ran for re-election. He was unopposed in the Democratic primary, and moved on to the general election, where he faced a stiff challenge in Denny Rehberg, the Lieutenant Governor of Montana and the Republican nominee. Despite Bob Dole's victory over Bill Clinton and Ross Perot in the state that year in the presidential election, Baucus managed to narrowly win re-election over Rehberg to secure a fourth term in the Senate.

1996 United States Senate election in Montana

← 1990 November 5, 1996 2002 →
 
Nominee Max Baucus Denny Rehberg
Party Democratic Republican
Popular vote 201,935 182,111
Percentage 49.56% 44.69%

County results
Baucus:      40–50%      50–60%      60–70%      70–80%
Rehberg:      40–50%      50–60%      60–70%      70–80%

U.S. senator before election

Max Baucus
Democratic

Elected U.S. Senator

Max Baucus
Democratic

Democratic primary

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Candidates

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Results

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Democratic Party primary results[1]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Max Baucus (incumbent) 85,976 100.00%
Total votes 85,976 100.00%

Reform primary

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Candidates

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  • Becky Shaw, student loan investigator and 1994 candidate for the Democratic Senate nomination[2]
  • Webb Sullivan, retired railroad worker[2]

Results

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Reform Party Primary results[1]
Party Candidate Votes %
Reform Becky Shaw 930 68.03%
Reform Webb Sullivan 437 31.97%
Total votes 1,367 100.00%

Republican primary

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Candidates

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Results

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Republican Primary results[1]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Denny Rehberg 82,158 73.81%
Republican Ed Borcherdt 14,670 13.18%
Republican John K. McDonald 14,485 13.01%
Total votes 111,313 100.00%

General election

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Results

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United States Senate election in Montana, 1996[3]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Democratic Max Baucus (incumbent) 201,935 49.56% −18.57%
Republican Denny Rehberg 182,111 44.69% +15.31%
Reform Becky Shaw 19,276 4.73%
Natural Law Stephen Heaton 4,168 1.02%
Majority 19,824 4.86% −33.88%
Turnout 407,490
Democratic hold Swing

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b c "1996 Statewide Primary Canvass - June 4, 1996" (PDF). Montana Secretary of State. Archived from the original (PDF) on October 28, 2014. Retrieved July 3, 2014.
  2. ^ a b Gruenwald, Juliana (June 10, 1996). "Democrat Yellowtail, GOP's Hill To Contend For Montana House Seat". CNN. AllPolitics. Retrieved June 24, 2021.
  3. ^ "Statistics of the Presidential and Congressional Election of November 5, 1996" (PDF). Clerk of the United States House of Representatives. Retrieved July 3, 2014.