1994 United States Senate election in Virginia

1994 United States Senate election in Virginia
Turnout	43.6% (voting eligible)
	County and independent city results; Robb: 40-50% 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% 80–90%; North: 40–50% 50–60% 60–70%
U.S. senator before election; Chuck Robb; Democratic	Elected U.S. Senator ; Chuck Robb; Democratic

The 1994 United States Senate election in Virginia was held November 8, 1994. Incumbent Democratic U.S. Senator Chuck Robb won re-election to a second term.

Democratic primary[]

Candidates[]

Sylvia Clute
Virgil Goode, State Senator from Rocky Mount
Chuck Robb, incumbent Senator since 1989
Nancy Spannaus, Lyndon LaRouche movement activist

Convention[]

1994 Virginia Democratic convention^[2]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Chuck Robb (incumbent)	543	49.86%
	Democratic	Virgil Goode	240	22.04%
	Democratic	Douglas Wilder (draft effort)	189	17.36%
	Democratic	Sylvia Clute	61	5.60%
	Democratic	Nancy Spannaus	56	5.14%
Total votes			1,089	100.00%

There was an attempt to draft Governor Doug Wilder to run against Robb, but he chose to run as an independent candidate.

Primary[]

1994 Democratic U.S. Senate primary^[3]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Chuck Robb (incumbent)	154,561	57.90%
	Democratic	Virgil Goode	90,547	33.92%
	Democratic	Sylvia Clute	17,329	6.49%
	Democratic	Nancy Spannaus	4,507	1.69%
Total votes			266,944	100.00%

Republican primary[]

Candidates[]

James C. Miller III, former Director of the Office of Management and Budget
Oliver North, Marine Corps veteran

Convention[]

North won a majority of the vote at the convention. He was not opposed in the primary.

Independents and third parties[]

Independents[]

J. Marshall Coleman, former Virginia Attorney General and candidate for Governor in 1989
Douglas Wilder, outgoing Governor of Virginia (withdrew)

General election[]

Campaign[]

Oliver North was a very controversial figure as he was involved in the Iran-Contra Affair, a scandal during Ronald Reagan's presidency. Marshall Coleman attempted to seize the middle ground between Robb and North. Republican Senator John Warner of Virginia endorsed Marshall Coleman. On the eve of the election, former first lady Nancy Reagan told a reporter that North had lied to her husband when discussing Iran-Contra with the former president, effectively eviscerating him. North's candidacy was documented in the 1996 film A Perfect Candidate.^[4]

In his failed bid to unseat Robb, North raised $20.3 million in a single year through nationwide direct mail solicitations, telemarketing, fundraising events, and contributions from major donors. About $16 million of that amount was from direct mail alone. This was the biggest accumulation of direct mail funds for a statewide campaign to that date, and it made North the top direct mail political fundraiser in the country in 1994.^[5]

Douglas Wilder, the first black governor of Virginia, who served from 1990 to 1994, originally entered the Senate race as an independent before dropping out.

Polling[]

Source	Date	Chuck Robb (D)	Oliver North (R)	Marshall Coleman (I)	Douglas Wilder (I)
Mason-Dixon	November 1–2, 1994	37%	36%	17%
Richmond Times-Dispatch	October 31 – November 3, 1994	39%	31%	12%
Roanoke College	October 27–30, 1994	39%	35%	14%
Mason-Dixon	October 15–17, 1994	33%	37%	16%
Mason-Dixon	September 22–24, 1994	33%	35%	18%
Mason-Dixon	September 8–11, 1994	33%	28%	15%	12%
Virginia Commonwealth University	July 7–15, 1994	29%	29%	11%	16%

Results[]

United States Senate election in Virginia, 1994^[6]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Democratic	Chuck Robb (Incumbent)	938,376	45.61%	-25.64%
	Republican	Oliver North	882,213	42.88%	+14.18%
	Independent	J. Marshall Coleman	235,324	11.44%
	Independent	L. Douglas Wilder (withdrew)	113	0.01%
	Write-ins		1,437	0.07%	+0.01%
Majority			56,163	2.73%	-39.83%
Turnout			2,057,463
	Democratic hold		Swing

References[]

^ Dr. Michael McDonald (March 25, 2013). "Turnout 1980-2012". George Mason University. Archived from the original on October 30, 2012. Retrieved April 3, 2013.
^ "Our Campaigns - VA US Senate - D Convention Race - Apr 16, 1994".
^ "Our Campaigns - VA US Senate - D Primary Race - Jun 14, 1994".
^ IMDb: A Perfect candidate
^ "Ollie, Inc.: how Oliver North raised over $20 million in a losing U.S. Senate race". Archived from the original on October 13, 2007. Retrieved September 24, 2007.
^ "Office of the Clerk, U.S. House of Representatives".

[VEP80-12-1] Dr. Michael McDonald (March 25, 2013). "Turnout 1980-2012". George Mason University. Archived from the original on October 30, 2012. Retrieved April 3, 2013.

[2] "Our Campaigns - VA US Senate - D Convention Race - Apr 16, 1994".

[3] "Our Campaigns - VA US Senate - D Primary Race - Jun 14, 1994".

[4] IMDb: A Perfect candidate

[5] "Ollie, Inc.: how Oliver North raised over $20 million in a losing U.S. Senate race". Archived from the original on October 13, 2007. Retrieved September 24, 2007.

[6] "Office of the Clerk, U.S. House of Representatives".

[1]

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1994 United States Senate election in Virginia

Contents

Democratic primary[]

Candidates[]

Convention[]

Primary[]

Republican primary[]

Candidates[]

Convention[]

Independents and third parties[]

Independents[]

General election[]

Campaign[]

Polling[]

Results[]

See also[]

References[]