2008 United States Senate election in Idaho
November 4, 2008
| |||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||
Risch: 40–50% 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% 80–90% >90% LaRocco: 40–50% 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% Rammell: 70–80% Marmon: >90% Tie: 40–50% No data | |||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||
| Elections in Idaho |
|---|
The 2008 United States Senate election in Idaho was held on November 4, 2008, to elect a member of the United States Senate to represent the state of Idaho. Incumbent Republican U.S. senator Larry Craig decided to retire instead of seeking a fourth term. Fellow Republican incumbent lieutenant governor and former governor Jim Risch won the open seat. Primary elections were held on May 27.[1]
Background
[edit]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 but did announce 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
[edit]Candidates
[edit]Nominee
[edit]Eliminated in primary
[edit]- Fred Adams
- Brian Hefner
- Bill Hunter
- Richard Phenneger, Businessman
- Hal James Styles
- Scott Syme, Iraq War veteran[4]
- Neal Thompson
Results
[edit]
- 40–50%
- 50–60%
- 60–70%
- 70–80%
| 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
[edit]Candidates
[edit]Nominee
[edit]- Larry LaRocco, former U.S. representative for Idaho's 1st congressional district (1991–1995)[6]
Eliminated in primary
[edit]- David J. Archuleta
Results
[edit]
- 50–60%
- 60–70%
- 70–80%
- 80–90%
- 50–60%
- 60–70%
| 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
[edit]Predictions
[edit]| 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
[edit]Aggregate polls
| Source of poll aggregation |
Dates administered |
Dates updated |
Jim Risch (R) |
Larry LaRocco (D) |
Other/Undecided [a] |
Margin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| RealClearPolitics[11] | August 18–September 17, 2008 | September 17, 2008 | 51.7% | 30.7% | 17.6% | Risch +21.0% |
| Rasmussen Reports[12] | September 9, 2008 | September 9, 2008 | 58.0% | 30.0% | 12.0% | Risch +28.0% |
| Average | 54.9% | 30.4% | 14.7% | Risch +24.5% | ||
| Poll source | Date(s) administered |
Sample size[b] |
Margin of error |
Jim Risch (R) |
Larry LaRocco (D) |
Rex Rammell (I) |
Other | Undecided |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Research 2000[13][A] | September 16–17, 2008 | 500 (LV) | ± 4.0% | 56% | 33% | 3% | 3% | 5% |
| Rasmussen Reports[12] | September 9, 2008 | 500 (LV) | ± 4.0% | 58% | 30% | – | 2% | 9% |
| Greg Smith Polling[14] | August 18–22, 2008 | 600 (LV) | ± 4.0% | 41% | 30% | 3% | – | 26% |
| Research 2000[15][B] | July 28–30, 2008 | 500 (LV) | ± 4.5% | 42% | 32% | 5% | 4% | 17% |
| Celinda Lake (D)[16][C] | May 20–25, 2008 | 500 (LV) | ± 4.5% | 43% | 28% | 5% | – | 24% |
| Robinson Research[17][permanent dead link] | November 27–December 12, 2007 | – | – | 46% | 27% | – | – | 27% |
| Myers Research (D)[18] | November 13–19, 2007 | 600 (LV) | – | 48% | 34% | – | – | 18% |
| SurveyUSA[19] | September 6, 2007 | 534 (RV) | ± 4.3% | 52% | 36% | – | – | 13% |
Generic Republican vs. Generic Democrat
| Poll source | Date(s) administered |
Sample size[b] |
Margin of error |
Generic Republican |
Generic Democrat |
Other | Undecided |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Myers Research (D)[18] | November 13–19, 2007 | 600 (LV) | – | 36% | 42% | 1% | 21% |
Dirk Kempthorne vs. Larry LaRocco
| Poll source | Date(s) administered |
Sample size[b] |
Margin of error |
Dirk Kempthorne (R) |
Larry LaRocco (D) |
Other | Undecided |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SurveyUSA[19] | September 6, 2007 | 534 (RV) | ± 4.3% | 55% | 36% | – | 9% |
David Leroy vs. Larry LaRocco
| Poll source | Date(s) administered |
Sample size[b] |
Margin of error |
David Leroy (R) |
Larry LaRocco (D) |
Other | Undecided |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SurveyUSA[19] | September 6, 2007 | 534 (RV) | ± 4.3% | 42% | 39% | – | 19% |
Mike Simpson vs. Larry LaRocco
| Poll source | Date(s) administered |
Sample size[b] |
Margin of error |
Mike Simpson(R) |
Larry LaRocco (D) |
Other | Undecided |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SurveyUSA[19] | September 6, 2007 | 534 (RV) | ± 4.3% | 54% | 34% | – | 12% |
Lawrence Wasden vs. Larry LaRocco
| Poll source | Date(s) administered |
Sample size[b] |
Margin of error |
Lawrence Wasden (R) |
Larry LaRocco (D) |
Other | Undecided |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SurveyUSA[19] | September 6, 2007 | 534 (RV) | ± 4.3% | 46% | 36% | – | 17% |
Dane Watkins vs. Larry LaRocco
| Poll source | Date(s) administered |
Sample size[b] |
Margin of error |
Dane Watkins (R) |
Larry LaRocco (D) |
Other | Undecided |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SurveyUSA[19] | September 6, 2007 | 534 (RV) | ± 4.3% | 40% | 41% | – | 19% |
Results
[edit]| 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 | |||||
Counties that flipped from Republican to Democratic
[edit]- Latah (largest municipality: Moscow)
- Shoshone (largest municipality: Kellogg)
- Teton (largest municipality: Victor)
See also
[edit]- 2008 United States House of Representatives elections in Idaho
- 2008 United States presidential election in Idaho
Notes
[edit]Partisan clients
References
[edit]- ^ 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".
- ^ a b "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.[dead link]
- ^ "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.
- ^ "2008 Idaho Senate". RealClearPolitics. Retrieved April 26, 2026.
- ^ a b "Idaho Senate: GOP's Risch Is Far Ahead 58% to 30%". Rasmussen Reports. September 11, 2008. Archived from the original on September 12, 2008. Retrieved April 26, 2026.
- ^ "ID-Sen: Republicans pull ahead". Daily Kos. September 19, 2008. Archived from the original on September 20, 2008. Retrieved April 26, 2026.
- ^ Dienstfrey, Eric (August 28, 2008). "POLL: Greg Smith Idaho (8/18-22)". Pollster.COM. Archived from the original on September 18, 2008. Retrieved April 26, 2026.
- ^ "ID-Sen: Shockingly close". Daily Kos. July 31, 2008. Archived from the original on August 27, 2008. Retrieved April 26, 2026.
- ^ "LaRocco Poll—Risch Unknown and Disliked". LaRocco For U.S. Senate. July 1, 2008. Archived from the original on September 18, 2008. Retrieved April 26, 2026.
- ^ "Robinson Research". Retrieved April 26, 2026.
- ^ a b "ID-Sen: Republicans Losing their Luster". Daily Kos. December 12, 2007. Archived from the original on December 14, 2007. Retrieved April 26, 2026.
- ^ a b c d e f "GOP Holds Larry Craig Idaho Senate Seat with Substitute Republican". SurveyUSA. September 8, 2007. Archived from the original on June 5, 2011. Retrieved April 26, 2026.
- ^ "Office of the Clerk, U.S. House of Representatives".
External links
[edit]- U.S. Congress candidates for Idaho Archived October 24, 2008, at the Wayback Machine 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