2008 United States Senate election in Idaho
The 2008 United States Senate election in Idaho was held on November 4, 2008. The primary elections were held on May 27.[1] Incumbent Republican U.S. Senator Larry Craig decided to retire instead of seeking a fourth term. Republican Jim Risch won the open seat.
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 County results Risch: 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% LaRocco: 40–50% 50–60% | |||||||||||||||||||||
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Background
Incumbent Larry Craig announced his intent to resign following an incident where he allegedly solicited another man for gay sex in a public restroom.[2] Craig later decided not to resign; however, he announced that he would not seek re-election. The filing deadline for the election was March 21, 2008. A total of 13 candidates filed for the seat.[3] Republican and Democratic candidates ran for their respective nominations in the May 27 primary.
Lieutenant Governor Jim Risch defeated a crowded field for the Republican nomination, while former Congressman Larry LaRocco won the Democratic nomination in similar fashion. Conservative independents Rex Rammell and Pro-Life (formerly Marvin Richardson) also qualified for the general election ballot. Former Caldwell city council member Kent Marmon secured the Libertarian nomination. In the general election, Risch defeated LaRocco and the other candidates to keep the seat in Republican hands.
Republican primary
Candidates
- Jim Risch, Lieutenant Governor of Idaho
- Fred Adams
- Brian Hefner
- Bill Hunter
- Richard Phenneger, Businessman
- Hal James Styles
- Scott Syme, Iraq War veteran[4]
- Neal Thompson
Results
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Jim Risch | 80,743 | 65.34% | |
| Republican | Scott Syme | 16,660 | 13.48% | |
| Republican | Richard Phenneger | 6,532 | 5.29% | |
| Republican | Neal Thompson | 5,375 | 4.35% | |
| Republican | Fred M. Adams | 4,987 | 4.04% | |
| Republican | Bill Hunter | 4,280 | 3.46% | |
| Republican | Brian E. Hefner | 2,915 | 2.36% | |
| Republican | Hal James Styles, Jr. | 2,082 | 1.68% | |
| Total votes | 123,574 | 100.00% | ||
Democratic primary
Candidates
- Larry LaRocco, former U.S. Representative[6]
- David J. Archuleta
Results
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Larry LaRocco | 29,023 | 72.35% | |
| Democratic | David J. Archuleta | 11,074 | 27.60% | |
| Democratic | Write-ins | 20 | 0.05% | |
| Total votes | 40,117 | 100.00% | ||
General election
Candidates
- Larry LaRocco, former U.S. Congressman (Democratic)
- Kent A. Marmon, former member of the Caldwell City Council (Libertarian)
- Pro-life (Independent)
- Rex Rammell, veterinarian, elk rancher, and Republican candidate for State House in 2002 and 2004 (Independent)
- Jim Risch, Lieutenant Governor and former Governor (Republican)
Predictions
| Source | Ranking | As of |
|---|---|---|
| The Cook Political Report[7] | Safe R | October 23, 2008 |
| CQ Politics[8] | Safe R | October 31, 2008 |
| Rothenberg Political Report[9] | Safe R | November 2, 2008 |
| Real Clear Politics[10] | Safe R | November 4, 2008 |
Polling
| Poll Source | Dates administered | Larry LaRocco (D) |
Jim Risch (R) |
Rex Rammel (I) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Survey USA | September 6–8, 2007 | 36% | 52% | - |
| Myers Research | November 13–19, 2007 | 34% | 48% | - |
| Robinson Research | November 26 – December 12, 2007 | 27% | 46% | - |
| Celinda Lake | May 20–25, 2008 | 28% | 43% | 6% |
| Research 2000 | July 28–30, 2008 | 32% | 42% | 5% |
| Greg Smith | August 18–22, 2008 | 30% | 41% | 3% |
| Rasmussen Reports | September 9, 2008 | 30% | 58% | - |
Results
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Jim Risch | 371,744 | 57.65% | -7.51% | |
| Democratic | Larry LaRocco | 219,903 | 34.11% | +1.56% | |
| Independent | Rex Rammell | 34,510 | 5.35% | ||
| Libertarian | Kent Marmon | 9,958 | 1.54% | -0.75% | |
| Independent | Pro-Life | 8,662 | 1.35% | ||
| Write-in | 3 | 0.00% | |||
| Majority | 151,841 | 23.55% | -9.06% | ||
| Turnout | 644,780 | ||||
| Republican hold | Swing | ||||
See also
References
- Elections, Campaign Disclosure and Lobbyists Archived August 6, 2008, at the Wayback Machine Idaho Secretary of State
- "Craig to Announce Resignation Saturday". Archived from the original on September 3, 2007.
- "LIST OF FEDERAL, STATEWIDE, AND JUDICIAL CANDIDATES" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on March 19, 2008.
- "Iraq vet announces bid in GOP Senate primary".
- "2008 Primary Results statewide". Archived from the original on April 16, 2009. Retrieved March 7, 2009.
- "LaRocco to run for Senate; Craig mum on future]". Retrieved May 8, 2007.
- "2008 Senate Race ratings for October 23, 2008". The Cook Political Report. Retrieved April 1, 2021.
- Race Ratings Chart: Senate Archived October 28, 2010, at the Wayback Machine CQ Politics
- "2008 Senate ratings". Inside Elections. Retrieved April 1, 2021.
- "2008 RCP Averages & Senate Results". Real Clear Politics. Retrieved August 31, 2021.
- "Office of the Clerk, U.S. House of Representatives".
External links
- U.S. Congress candidates for Idaho at Project Vote Smart
- Robinson Research
- Idaho, U.S. Senate from CQ Politics
- Idaho U.S. Senate from OurCampaigns.com
- Idaho U.S. Senate race from 2008 Race Tracker
- Campaign contributions for Idaho congressional races from OpenSecrets
- Official campaign websites (Archived)
- Jim Risch, Republican nominee
- Larry LaRocco, Democratic nominee
- Kent Marmon, Libertarian nominee
- Rex Rammell, Independent candidate