2008 United States Senate election in Illinois

2008 United States Senate election in Illinois
Turnout	68.42%
	County results; Durbin: 40–50% 50–60% 60–70% 70–80%; Sauerberg: 40–50% 50–60%
U.S. senator before election; Dick Durbin; Democratic	Elected U.S. Senator ; Dick Durbin; Democratic

The 2008 United States Senate election in Illinois was held on November 4, 2008. Incumbent Democratic U.S. Senator Dick Durbin sought a third term in office and faced minimal opposition from Republican Steve Sauerberg. As expected, Durbin overwhelmingly won re-election. On the same night, fellow Democratic Senator Barack Obama was elected President of the United States, defeating Republican Senator John McCain of Arizona.

Election information

The primaries and general elections coincided with those for other federal elections (United States President and House), as well as those for state offices.

Turnout

For the primary elections, turnout was 32.37%, with 2,364,409 votes cast.^[1]^[2] For the general election, turnout was 68.42%, with 5,329,884 votes cast.^[1]^[2]

Democratic primary

Candidates

Dick Durbin, incumbent U.S. Senator

Results

Democratic primary results^[3]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Dick Durbin (incumbent)	1,653,833	100.00%
Total votes			1,653,833	100.00%

Republican primary

Candidates

Steve Sauerberg, physician
Andy Martin, perennial candidate
Mike Psak, trucker and perennial candidate

Results

Republican primary results^[3]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Steve Sauerberg	395,199	55.62%
	Republican	Andy Martin	240,548	33.85%
	Republican	Mike Psak	74,829	10.53%
Total votes			710,576	100.00%

General election

Predictions

Source	Ranking	As of
The Cook Political Report^[4]	Safe D	October 23, 2008
CQ Politics^[5]	Safe D	October 31, 2008
Rothenberg Political Report^[6]	Safe D	November 2, 2008
Real Clear Politics^[7]	Safe D	November 4, 2008

Results

Durbin's 3,615,844 votes is the highest vote total in a statewide election in Illinois. No one has broken his record since, however then Vice President Joe Biden received the most votes in the presidential election in Illinois in 2020. Durbin comfortably won re-election with the best margin of his career, winning all but four of the state's 102 counties.

2008 United States Senate election in Illinois^[1]^[8]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Democratic	Dick Durbin (incumbent)	3,615,844	67.84%	+7.51%
	Republican	Steve Sauerberg	1,520,621	28.53%	−9.49%
	Green	Kathy Cummings	119,135	2.24%	0.00%
	Libertarian	Larry A. Stafford	50,224	0.94%	−0.70%
	Constitution	Chad N. Koppie	24,059	0.45%	0.00%
Total votes			5,329,884	100.00%	N/A
	Democratic hold

Counties that flipped from Republican to Democratic

Ogle (largest city: Rochelle)
Jo Daviess (Largest city: Galena)
Carroll (largest city: Savanna)
Stephenson (largest city: Freeport)
Boone (largest city: Belvidere)
DuPage (largest city: Aurora)
Kane (largest city: Aurora)
Kendall (largest village: Oswego)
McHenry (largest city: Crystal Lake)
Putnam (largest city: Hennpin)
Ford (largest city: Paxton)
Iroqouis (largest city: Watseka)
Livingston (largest city: Pontiac)
Washington (largest city: Nashville)
Monroe (largest city: Waterloo)
Effingham (largest city: Effingham)
Wabash (largest city: Mount Carmel)
Richland (largest city: Olney)
Lawrence (Largest city: Lawrenceville)
Crawford (largest city: Robinson)
Clark (largest city: Marshall)

References

^ ^a ^b ^c "Voter Turnout". www.elections.il.gov. Illinois State Board of Elections. Archived from the original on May 30, 2021. Retrieved March 22, 2020.
^ ^a ^b "Election Results". www.elections.il.gov. Illinois State Board of Elections. Archived from the original on February 22, 2020. Retrieved March 23, 2020.
^ ^a ^b "Ballots Cast". Elections.il.gov. February 5, 2008. Archived from the original on March 3, 2016. Retrieved April 4, 2015.
^ "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.
^ "Statistics of the Presidential and Congressional Election of November 4, 2008" (PDF). Clerk.house.gov. Retrieved April 4, 2015.

External links

Illinois State Board of Elections
U.S. Congress candidates for Illinois at Project Vote Smart
Illinois, U.S. Senate from CQ Politics
Illinois U.S. Senate from OurCampaigns.com
Illinois U.S. Senate race from 2008 Race Tracker
Campaign contributions for Illinois congressional races from OpenSecrets
Official campaign websites (Archived)
- Dick Durbin, Democratic incumbent nominee
- Steve Sauerberg, Republican nominee
- Larry Stafford, Libertarian nominee
- Kathy Cummings, Green Party nominee
- Chad Koppie, Constitution nominee

[turnout-1] "Voter Turnout". www.elections.il.gov. Illinois State Board of Elections. Archived from the original on May 30, 2021. Retrieved March 22, 2020.

[result-2] "Election Results". www.elections.il.gov. Illinois State Board of Elections. Archived from the original on February 22, 2020. Retrieved March 23, 2020.

[Primary_election_results-3] "Ballots Cast". Elections.il.gov. February 5, 2008. Archived from the original on March 3, 2016. Retrieved April 4, 2015.

[Cook_PR-4] "2008 Senate Race ratings for October 23, 2008". The Cook Political Report. Retrieved April 1, 2021.

[5] Race Ratings Chart: Senate Archived October 28, 2010, at the Wayback Machine CQ Politics

[Inside_Elections-6] "2008 Senate ratings". Inside Elections. Retrieved April 1, 2021.

[7] "2008 RCP Averages & Senate Results". Real Clear Politics. Retrieved August 31, 2021.

[8] "Statistics of the Presidential and Congressional Election of November 4, 2008" (PDF). Clerk.house.gov. Retrieved April 4, 2015.

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v t e Elections in Illinois
By year	1936 1938 1940 1942 1944 1946 1948 1950 1952 1954 1956 1958 1960 1962 1964 1966 1968 1969 1970 1972 1974 1976 1978 1980 1982 1984 1986 1998 1990 1992 1994 1996 1998 2000 2002 2004 2006 2008 2010 2012 2014 2016 2018 2020 2022
Presidential	1820 1824 1828 1832 1836 1840 1844 1848 1852 1856 1860 1864 1868 1872 1876 1880 1884 1888 1892 1896 1900 1904 1908 1912 1916 1920 1924 1928 1932 1936 1940 1944 1948 1952 1956 1960 1964 1968 1972 1976 1980 1984 1988 1992 1996 2000 2004 2008 (Dem primary, Rep primary) 2012 2016 (Dem primary) 2020 (Dem primary)
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U.S. House	2000 (1st) 2006 2008 2010 (17th) 2012 2014 2016 2018 2020 2022
Special	2nd congressional, 1995 14th congressional, 2008 5th congressional, 2009 2nd congressional, 2013 18th congressional, 2015 Comptroller, 2016
Gubernatorial	1818 1822 1826 1830 1834 1838 1842 1846 1848 1852 1856 1860 1864 1868 1872 1876 1880 1884 1888 1892 1896 1900 1904 1908 1912 1916 1920 1924 1928 1932 1936 1940 1944 1948 1952 1956 1960 1964 1968 1972 1976 1978 1982 1986 1990 1994 1998 2002 2006 2010 2014 2018 2022
Lieutenant gubernatorial	1818 1822 1826 1830 1834 1838 1842 1846 1848 1852 1856 1860 1864 1868 1872 1876 1880 1884 1888 1892 1896 1900 1904 1908 1912 1916 1920 1924 1928 1932 1936 1940 1944 1948 1952 1956 1960 1964 1968
Other state executive offices	Attorney General 2018 2022 Secretary of State 2022 Comptroller 2016
State Senate	2004 2006 2008 2010 2012 2014 2016 2018 2020 2022 2024
State House	2004 2006 2008 2010 2012 2014 2016 2018 2020 2022 2024
State judicial	1936 1938 1940 1942 1948 1960 1962 2012 2014 2016 2018 2020 2022
Ballot measures and referendums	State capitol referendum (1834) Cutback Amendment (1980) Crime Victim Rights Amendment (1992) Governor Recall Amendment (2010) Public Pension Amendment (2012) Marsy's Law (2014) Right to Vote Amendment (2014) Transportation Taxes and Fees Lockbox Amendment (2016) Fair Tax (2020) Right to Collective Bargaining Amendment (2022)
Chicago mayoral	1837 1838 1839 1840 1841 1842 1843 1844 (Mar) 1844 (Apr) 1845 1846 1847 1848 1849 1850 1851 1852 1853 1854 1855 1856 1857 1858 1859 1860 1861 1862 1863 1865 1867 1869 1871 1873 1876 (Apr) 1876 (Jul) 1877 1879 1881 1883 1885 1887 1889 1891 1893 (Apr) 1893 (Dec) 1895 1897 1899 1901 1903 1905 1907 1911 1915 1919 1923 1927 1931 1935 1939 1943 1947 1951 1955 1959 1963 1967 1971 1975 1977 1979 1983 1987 1989 1991 1995 1999 2003 2007 2011 2015 2019 2023
Chicago City Council	1923 1925 1927 1929 1931 1933 1935 1939 1943 1947 1951 1955 1959 1963 1967 1971 1975 1979 1983 1987 1991 1995 1999 2003 2007 2011 2015 2019 2023
Other municipal	1924 Cicero
Cook County	1946 1980 (State's Attorney) 1984 1986 1988 1990 1992 1994 1996 1998 2000 2002 2004 2006 2008 2010 2012 2014 2016 2018 2020 2022

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Election information

Turnout

Democratic primary

Candidates

Results

Republican primary

Candidates

Results

General election

Predictions

Results

Counties that flipped from Republican to Democratic

See also

References

External links