2010 United States Senate election in Georgia

The 2010 United States Senate election in Georgia took place on November 2, 2010. Incumbent Republican U.S. Senator Johnny Isakson won re-election to a second term.^[1]

Democratic primary

Candidates

Mike Thurmond, Commissioner of Labor
RJ Hadley, chief of staff to the Rockdale County Commission

Polling

Poll source	Dates administered	Michael Thurmond	RJ Hadley	Undecided
Survey USA	July 7–8, 2010	64%	13%	23%
Survey USA	June 14–17, 2010	68%	11%	22%

Results

Democratic primary results^[2]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Michael Thurmond	297,226	84.3
	Democratic	RJ Hadley	55,159	15.7
Total votes			352,385	100

Republican primary

Candidates

Johnny Isakson, incumbent Class III U.S. Senator

Results

Republican primary results^[3]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Johnny Isakson	558,298	100
Total votes			558,298	100

General election

Candidates

Chuck Donovan (L), airline pilot^[4]
Johnny Isakson (R), incumbent Class III U.S. Senator
Mike Thurmond (D), Commissioner of Labor

Campaign

Thurmond was the underdog in trying to become the first African-American to serve Georgia in the U.S. Senate. Thurmond claimed "Polls are irrelevant. As everyone knows, the only poll that counts is the election on November 2."^[5] Isakson has defended his record saying "Big business is not evil. If you didn't have big business, you wouldn't have jobs in America today."^[6] Despite the fact all political prognasticars classified the race as being safe for Isakson by August 20,^[7] he stated that Thurmond was a potentially formidable candidate, and that he would take nothing for granted.^[8]

Debates

October 24^[9]

Predictions

Source	Ranking	As of
Cook Political Report	Solid R^[10]	October 25, 2010
Rothenberg	Safe R^[11]	October 22, 2010
Swing State Project	Safe R^{[citation needed]}
RealClearPolitics	Safe R^[12]	October 25, 2010
Sabato's Crystal Ball	Safe R^[13]	October 21, 2010
CQ Politics	Safe R^[14]	October 25, 2010

Polling

Poll source	Dates administered	Johnny Isakson (R)	Michael Thurmond (D)	Chuck Donovan (L)	Other*	Undecided
Mason-Dixon	October 26–28, 2010	56%	33%	4%	0%	7%
Rasmussen Reports	October 24, 2010	59%	29%	5%	3%	4%
SurveyUSA	October 21–24, 2010	58%	34%	5%	––	3%
Rasmussen Reports	October 6, 2010	53%	38%	5%	1%	3%
Insider Advantage	September 27, 2010	61%	29%	3%	––	7%
Rasmussen Reports	September 21, 2010	52%	36%	6%	––	6%
Mason-Dixon	September 19, 2010	52%	33%	4%	––	11%
Survey USA	September 10–12, 2010	56%	34%	6%	––	4%
Insider Advantage	August 17, 2010	47%	35%	7%	––	11%
Rasmussen Reports	August 11, 2010	55%	41%	––	2%	2%
Rasmussen Reports	May 20, 2010	57%	30%	––	6%	8%
Rasmussen Reports	April 22, 2010	51%	35%	––	––	––

^{* Note: There is only one "other" candidate: Chuck Donovan.}

Fundraising

Candidate (party)	Receipts	Disbursements	Cash on hand	Debt
Johnny Isakson (R)	$5,943,285	$5,650,138	$2,588,284	$0
Michael Thurmond (D)	$288,666	$202,610	$86,055	$5,220
Source: Federal Election Commission^[15]

Results

United States Senate election in Georgia, 2010^[16]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Republican	Johnny Isakson (incumbent)	1,489,904	58.31%	+0.43%
	Democratic	Michael Thurmond	996,516	39.00%	−0.98%
	Libertarian	Chuck Donovan	68,750	2.69%	+0.55%
	Independent	Steve Davis (write-in)	52	0.00%	N/A
	Independent	Raymond Beckworth (write-in)	24	0.00%	N/A
	Independent	Brian Russell Brown (write-in)	12	0.00%	N/A
Majority			493,388	19.31%
Total votes			2,555,258	100
	Republican hold		Swing

References

^ Jim Galloway (May 8, 2008). "Isakson says he won't run for governor, will seek re-election to U.S. Senate". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
^ "7/20/2010 - United States Senator, Isakson". Sos.georgia.gov. Retrieved 2010-08-21.
^ "7/20/2010 - United States Senator, Isakson". Sos.georgia.gov. Retrieved 2010-08-21.
^ "Online Guide to Georgia Politics". Politics1. Retrieved 2010-06-14.
^ Thurmond looks to oust senator || OnlineAthens.com
^ For incumbent Sen. Isakson, it's all business » Local News » The Daily Citizen, Dalton, GA
^ http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=United_States_Senate_elections,_2010&oldid=380110872
^ Race looks tough for Isakson's competitors | ajc.com
^ US Senate debate in Atlanta October 24 - Submit your questions
^ "Senate". Cook Political Report. Retrieved October 25, 2010.
^ "Senate Ratings". Rothenberg Political Report. Retrieved October 25, 2010.
^ "Battle for the Senate". RealClearPolitics. Retrieved October 25, 2010.
^ "2010 Senate Ratings". Sabato's Crystal Ball. Retrieved October 25, 2010.
^ "Race Ratings Chart: Senate". CQ Politics. Retrieved October 25, 2010.
^ "2010 House and Senate Campaign Finance for Georgia". fec.gov. Retrieved May 1, 2010.
^ 11/2/2010 - United States Senator, Isakson

External links

Elections Division of the Georgia Secretary of State
U.S. Congress candidates for Georgia at Project Vote Smart
Georgia U.S. Senate from OurCampaigns.com
Campaign contributions from Open Secrets
2010 Georgia Senate General Election: Sen. Johnny Isakson (R) vs Michael Thurmond (D) graph of multiple polls from Pollster.com
Election 2010: Georgia Senate from Rasmussen Reports
2010 Georgia Senate Race from Real Clear Politics
2010 Georgia Senate Race from CQ Politics
Race profile from The New York Times

Official campaign websites

[1] Jim Galloway (May 8, 2008). "Isakson says he won't run for governor, will seek re-election to U.S. Senate". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

[2] "7/20/2010 - United States Senator, Isakson". Sos.georgia.gov. Retrieved 2010-08-21.

[3] "7/20/2010 - United States Senator, Isakson". Sos.georgia.gov. Retrieved 2010-08-21.

[4] "Online Guide to Georgia Politics". Politics1. Retrieved 2010-06-14.

[5] Thurmond looks to oust senator || OnlineAthens.com

[6] For incumbent Sen. Isakson, it's all business » Local News » The Daily Citizen, Dalton, GA

[7] ttp://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=United_States_Senate_elections,_2010&oldid=380110872

[8] Race looks tough for Isakson's competitors | ajc.com

[9] US Senate debate in Atlanta October 24 - Submit your questions

[10] "Senate". Cook Political Report. Retrieved October 25, 2010.

[11] "Senate Ratings". Rothenberg Political Report. Retrieved October 25, 2010.

[12] "Battle for the Senate". RealClearPolitics. Retrieved October 25, 2010.

[13] "2010 Senate Ratings". Sabato's Crystal Ball. Retrieved October 25, 2010.

[14] "Race Ratings Chart: Senate". CQ Politics. Retrieved October 25, 2010.

[15] "2010 House and Senate Campaign Finance for Georgia". fec.gov. Retrieved May 1, 2010.

[16] 11/2/2010 - United States Senator, Isakson

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Democratic primary

Candidates

Polling

Results

Republican primary

Candidates

Results

General election

Candidates

Campaign

Debates

Predictions

Polling

Fundraising

Results

See also

References

External links