2010 United States Senate election in Vermont
The 2010 United States Senate election in Vermont took place on November 2, 2010 alongside other elections to the United States Senate in other states as well as elections to the United States House of Representatives and various state and local elections. Incumbent Democratic U.S. Senator Patrick Leahy was re-elected to a seventh term.[1]
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Leahy: 30-40% 40-50% 50-60% 60-70% 70-80% 80-90%
Britton: 40-50% 50-60% | |||||||||||||||||
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| Elections in Vermont |
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Democratic primary
Candidates
- Patrick Leahy, incumbent U.S. Senator
- Daniel Freilich, military doctor (also running as an independent)
Results
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Patrick Leahy (incumbent) | 64,177 | 89.06% | |
| Democratic | Daniel Freilich | 7,886 | 10.94% | |
| Total votes | 72,063 | 100.0% | ||
General election
Candidates
- Len Britton (R), businessman
- Patrick Leahy (D), incumbent U.S. Senator
- Stephen Cain (I)[3]
- Pete Diamondstone (Socialist)[3][4]
- Cris Ericson (U.S. Marijuana), two-time former candidate for U.S. Senate[3]
- Daniel Freilich (I), military doctor[3]
- Johenry Nunes (I), military education and training manager[3]
Campaign
First elected in 1974, Leahy is the first and only Democrat elected to the U.S. Senate from Vermont. He won his last two re-election campaigns with at least 70% of the vote. He is the second-most-senior member of Congress. In a June 2010 poll, the incumbent was viewed very favorably by 52% of the state. 52% of the state opposed repeal of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and 50% opposed Arizona's immigration law. Obama's approval rating in the poll was 62%.[5] Obama carried Vermont with 67% of the vote in 2008.
His Republican opponent was Len Britton, a businessman who had never run for public office before. As of August 2010, he had released two TV ads, criticizing Obama's stimulus and the deficits.[6] His campaign manager admitted "Len is an unknown candidate and we are rigorously running on a difficult campaign schedule."[7]
Debates
- October 14: All four candidates on CCTV in Burlington
- October 19: Two candidates on Vermont Public Radio[8]
Predictions
| Source | Ranking | As of |
|---|---|---|
| Cook Political Report[9] | Solid D | October 26, 2010 |
| Rothenberg[10] | Safe D | October 22, 2010 |
| RealClearPolitics[11] | Safe D | October 26, 2010 |
| Sabato's Crystal Ball[12] | Safe D | October 21, 2010 |
| CQ Politics[13] | Safe D | October 26, 2010 |
Polling
| Poll source | Date(s) administered |
Sample size |
Margin of error |
Patrick Leahy (D) |
Len Britton (R) |
Other | Undecided |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rasmussen Reports | June 17, 2010 | 500 | ± 4.5% | 64% | 29% | 3% | 4% |
| Rasmussen Reports | September 13, 2010 | 500 | ± 4.5% | 63% | 32% | 2% | 4% |
| Vermont Public Radio/Mason-Dixon | October 11–13, 2010 | 625 | ± 4.0% | 62% | 27% | 4% | 7% |
Fundraising
| Candidate (party) | Receipts | Disbursements | Cash on hand | Debt |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Patrick Leahy (D) | $3,469,878 | $2,090,603 | $2,598,061 | $0 |
| Len Britton (R) | $199,813 | $144,541 | $55,270 | $69,833 |
| Source: Federal Election Commission[14] | ||||
Results
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Patrick Leahy (incumbent) | 151,281 | 64.36% | -6.27% | |
| Republican | Len Britton | 72,699 | 30.93% | +6.38% | |
| Independent | Daniel Freilich | 3,544 | 1.51% | N/A | |
| Marijuana | Cris Ericson | 2,731 | 1.16% | N/A | |
| Independent | Stephen Cain | 2,356 | 1.00% | N/A | |
| Socialist | Peter Diamondstone | 1,433 | 0.61% | N/A | |
| Independent | Johenry Nunes | 1,021 | 0.43% | N/A | |
| Majority | 78,528 | 33.43% | |||
| Total votes | 235,065 | 100.00% | |||
| Democratic hold | Swing | ||||
References
- "Patrick Leahy Defeats Len Britton In Vermont Senate Race". Huffington Post. November 2, 2010.
- "Vermont Results". Politico. August 24, 2010. Retrieved August 24, 2010.
- "2010 General Election Candidate Listing as of (June 17, 2010 at 7:15 p.m.)" (PDF). Secretary of State of Vermont. June 17, 2010. Archived from the original (PDF) on July 27, 2011. Retrieved August 18, 2010.
- "2010 Minor Party Nominations for the November 2, 2010 Vermont General Election" (PDF). Secretary of State of Vermont. Archived from the original (PDF) on September 27, 2011. Retrieved August 18, 2010.
- "Election 2010: Vermont Senate". www.rasmussenreports.com.
- Len Britton unveils 2nd humorous as on national debt crisis
- Burlington Free Press
- Opponents challenge Leahy in first debate Burlington Free Press
- "Senate". Cook Political Report. Retrieved October 26, 2010.
- "Senate Ratings". Rothenberg Political Report. Retrieved October 26, 2010.
- "Battle for the Senate". RealClearPolitics. Retrieved October 26, 2010.
- "2010 Senate Ratings". Sabato's Crystal Ball. Retrieved October 26, 2010.
- "Race Ratings Chart: Senate". CQ Politics. Archived from the original on October 28, 2010. Retrieved October 26, 2010.
- "2010 House and Senate Campaign Finance for Vermont". fec.gov. Retrieved August 22, 2010.
- "Vermont Election Results". The New York Times.
External links
- Elections and Campaign Finance Division at the Vermont Secretary of State
- U.S. Congress candidates for Vermont at Project Vote Smart
- Vermont U.S. Senate from OurCampaigns.com
- Campaign contributions from Open Secrets
- 2010 Vermont Senate General Election: Len Britton (R) vs Patrick Leahy (D) graph of multiple polls from Pollster.com
- Election 2010: Vermont Senate from Rasmussen Reports
- 2010 Vermont Senate Race from Real Clear Politics
- 2010 Vermont Senate Race from CQ Politics
- Race profile from The New York Times
- Official campaign websites