United States Senate election in New Mexico, 2008
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| United States Senate election in New Mexico, 2008 | ||||
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| November 4, 2008 | ||||
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| Nominee | Tom Udall | Steve Pearce | ||
| Party | Democratic | Republican | ||
| Popular vote | 505,128 | 318,522 | ||
| Percentage | 61.3% | 38.7% | ||
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| Election Results by county | ||||
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| Elections in New Mexico | |
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City of Albuquerque |
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The 2008 New Mexico Senate Election was held on November 4, 2008 with Tom Udall the winner. The election was considered an open contest due to incumbent Republican Senator Pete Domenici's retirement. All three of New Mexico's U.S. Representatives (Democrat Tom Udall and Republicans Steve Pearce and Heather Wilson) chose to retire from the U.S. House of Representatives in order to run for the seat. On June 3, 2008, Udall won the Democratic primary and Pearce won the Republican primary.[1]
In February 2008 CQ Politics changed the rating of the election from 'No Clear Favorite' to 'Leans Democratic' citing polls.[2][3] In June, Senator John Ensign of Nevada, the chairman of the National Republican Senatorial Committee, considered New Mexico to be one of the top ten most competitive Senate races.[4] At the end of August, The Cook Political Report rated the race as 'Lean Democratic'.[5] At the end of September, The Rothenberg Political Report rated the race 'Likely Takeover'.[6] Udall ended up winning with 61.2 percent of the vote.[7]
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[edit] Background
In February 2007 Domenici indicated his intention to run for re-election.[8] By October 2007, he changed his mind, stating that because of the progression of a medical condition, he would not seek a seventh term.[9] Domenici also lost his chairmanship after Republicans lost control of the Senate in the 2006 Senate election, which may have inclined him against running. After Domenici announced he was not running, Democratic Governor Bill Richardson was considered a leading candidate for the seat, but in October he affirmed his commitment to his presidential nomination campaign.[10]
In October Albuquerque Mayor Martin Chavez entered the race for the Democratic nomination.[11] In early November five-term Democratic Rep. Tom Udall entered the race.[12] On December 7 Chavez withdrew from the race, saying "While I deeply appreciate all the support I have received, it has become very clear to me that Democrats should not be divided in the upcoming election."[13]
Udall raised more than $801,000 prior to November 29.[14] Wilson had slightly less, including a November Washington fundraiser with Vice President Dick Cheney that netted $110,000, bringing her total to about $750,000.[15]
On June 3, 2008 Pearce and Udall won their respective nomination contests. [1]
[edit] Controversy
Domenici and Wilson are both being investigated by the Senate for their roles in the dismissal of prosecutor David Iglesias. This may have affected Wilson's chances in the 2008 election.[16]
In late October Pearce made 130,000 automated phone calls, which led Wilson to "cry foul."[17] At issue was Pearce's use of the phone calls to justify his opposition to the State Children's Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) bill. The Wilson campaign claimed that "Pearce violated House ethics by urging those he called to contact him through his official, non-campaign phone number or check out his official, non-campaign Web site."[18]
[edit] Money
The National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC) attempted to defend 23 Senate seats up for election in November. Committee chair Senator John Ensign identified the 10 most competitive Republican seats in June 2008. He was asked about the two Republican seats most likely to turn Democratic, Virginia and New Mexico. Ensign did not directly say whether the NRSC was considering walking away to work on other seats that can be won, but he said, "You don’t waste money on races that don’t need it or you can’t win.”[19]
[edit] Debates
The candidates have agreed to three televised debates: October 15 on KOB-TV, October 18 on KRQE and October 26 on KOAT-TV. The AARP will co-sponsor the second debate and the Albuquerque Journal will co-sponsor the final debate. They will also appear together on Meet the Press in the fall.[20]
[edit] Candidates
[edit] Democratic Party
- Tom Udall of Santa Fe: former Attorney General of New Mexico 1991-99, Representative from New Mexico's 3rd congressional district 1999-present (campaign website)
[edit] Republican Party
- Steve Pearce of Hobbs: state representative 1997-99, Representative from New Mexico's 2nd congressional district 2003-present (campaign website)
[edit] Defeated in Primary
- Heather Wilson of Albuquerque: Representative from New Mexico's 1st congressional district 1998-present (campaign website)
[edit] Polling
[edit] Republican Primary
| Source | Date | Pearce (R) | Wilson (R) |
|---|---|---|---|
| SurveyUSA | May 15, 2008 | 49% | 46% |
| SurveyUSA | November 16–18, 2007 | 37% | 56% |
[edit] General Election
Pearce (R) v Udall (D)
| Source | Date | Pearce (R) | Udall (D) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Survey USA | October 31, 2008 | 42% | 56% |
| Rasmussen Reports | October 28, 2008 | 41% | 56% |
| Rasmussen Reports | October 13, 2008 | 37% | 57% |
| Survey USA | October 13, 2008 | 40% | 58% |
| Rasmussen Reports | October 1, 2008 | 41% | 55% |
| Survey USA | September 29–30, 2008 | 39% | 58% |
| Public Policy Polling | September 19, 2008 | 37% | 57% |
| Survey USA | September 16, 2008 | 41% | 56% |
| Rasmussen Reports | September 8, 2008 | 44% | 51% |
| Rasmussen Reports | August 20, 2008 | 44% | 52% |
| Rasmussen Reports | July 24, 2008 | 35% | 61% |
| SurveyUSA | May 15, 2008 | 36% | 60% |
| Rasmussen Reports | May 14, 2008 | 37% | 53% |
| Rasmussen Reports | April 10, 2008 | 40% | 54% |
| Rasmussen Reports | February 29, 2008 | 42% | 50% |
| New Mexico State University | February 11, 2008 | 31% | 53% |
| SurveyUSA | November 16–18, 2007 | 40% | 54% |
| Research 2000 | November 5–7, 2007 | 37% | 54% |
| SurveyUSA | October 27–30, 2007 | 40% | 56% |
| Fairbank, Maslin, Maullin & Associates | October 23–27, 2007 | 33% | 50% |
| SurveyUSA | October 5–7, 2007 | 37% | 55% |
[edit] Election Results
[edit] Republican Primary
Unofficial results [1]:
| 2008 New Mexico U.S. Senator Republican primary election | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
| Republican | Steve Pearce | 57,410 | 51.4 | ||
| Republican | Heather Wilson | 54,264 | 48.6 | ||
| Turnout | 111,674 | ||||
[edit] General Election
| 2008 New Mexico U.S. Senator general election | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
| Democratic | Tom Udall | 505,128 | 61.3 | +26.3 | |
| Republican | Steve Pearce | 318,522 | 38.7 | -26.3 | |
| Majority | 186,606 | ||||
| Turnout | 823,650 | ||||
| Democratic gain from Republican | Swing | ||||
[edit] References
- ^ a b Election.KOB.com - Pearce narrowly wins U.S. Senate nomination
- ^ "Democratic Udall Running Strong in New Mexico Senate Race". CQ Politics. February 11, 2008. http://www.cqpolitics.com/wmspage.cfm?parm1=5&docID=news-000002668829. Retrieved 2008-12-18.
- ^ Race Ratings Chart: Senate CQ Politics
- ^ Kate Phillips, G.O.P. Leader Maps Senate Elections The New York Times, June 13, 2008
- ^ 2008 Senate Race Chart The Cook Race Ratings, August 21, 2008
- ^ 2008 Senate Ratings The Rothenberg Political Report, September 14, 2008
- ^ CNN.com
- ^ Talhelm, Jennifer (2007-02-13). "Domenici: 'I am running' in 2008". The Santa Fe New Mexican. http://www.freenewmexican.com/news/56924.html. Retrieved 2007-02-14.
- ^ Murray, Shailagh (2007-10-05). "Citing Health, GOP's Domenici says he'll retire from Senate". The Washington Post. http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/10/04/AR2007100401516.html. Retrieved 2007-10-05.
- ^ Press, Associated (2008-10-04). "Richardson Sticks with Presidential Bid". The New York Times. http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/us/AP-Richardson-Senate.html. Retrieved 2008-10-05.
- ^ "Chavez announces U.S. Senate run". KOB-TV. October 9, 2007. http://kob.com/article/stories/S220083.shtml?cat=500. Retrieved 2007-11-18.
- ^ "NM Rep. Tom Udall to Run for Senate". Associated Press. November 11, 2007. http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5ilmYcsJz4U8IC8m_ox2SWgPj7DegD8SR39O80. Retrieved 2007-11-11.
- ^ "Chávez drops out of U. S. Senate race". KRQE-TV. December 7, 2007. http://www.krqe.com/Global/story.asp?S=7468037. Retrieved 2007-12-18.
- ^ "Ten things to know about Senate hopeful Rep. Tom Udall". Albuquerque Tribune. November 29, 2007. http://www.abqtrib.com/news/2007/nov/29/ten-things-know-about-senate-hopeful-rep-tom-udall/. Retrieved 2007-12-11.
- ^ "Wilson pulls $110,000 at Cheney fundraiser". The Hill. November 16, 2007. http://thehill.com/campaign-2008/wilson-pulls-110000-at-cheney-fundraiser-2007-11-16.html. Retrieved 2007-12-11.
- ^ "Wilson, Possibly Udall To Seek Domenici's Senate Seat". The Gate. October 4, 2008. http://thegate.nationaljournal.com/2007/10/wilson_to_seek_domenicis_senat_1.php. Retrieved 2007-10-18.
- ^ "Pearce calls voters, Wilson cries foul". KOB. 2007-10-22. http://kob.com/article/stories/S232572.shtml?cat=504. Retrieved 2007-11-18.
- ^ "Senate hopefuls don't inspire". Alamogordo Daily News. October 31, 2007. http://www.alamogordonews.com/opinion/ci_7325103. Retrieved 2007-11-18.
- ^ Davis, Susan (June 12, 2008). "Sen. Ensign Says GOP Majority Would Be ‘Fairly Miraculous’". Wall Street Journal blog. http://blogs.wsj.com/washwire/2008/06/12/sen-ensign-says-gop-majority-would-be-fairly-miraculous/.
- ^ Senate candidates agree on 3 NM televised debates AP, August 17, 2008
[edit] External links
- Elections from the New Mexico Secretary of State
- U.S. Congress candidates for New Mexico at Project Vote Smart
- New Mexico, U.S. Senate from CQ Politics
- New Mexico U.S. Senate from OurCampaigns.com
- New Mexico U.S. Senate race from 2008 Race Tracker
- Campaign contributions from OpenSecrets.org
- Pearce (R) vs Udall (D) graph of multiple polls from Pollster.com
- Official campaign websites
- People for Pearce, Republican candidate
- Tom Udall for Senate, Democratic candidate
