2000 United States Senate election in Missouri
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 County results Carnahan: 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% Ashcroft: 40–50% 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% | |||||||||||||||||
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The 2000 United States Senate election in Missouri was held on November 7, 2000, to select the next U.S. Senator from Missouri. Incumbent Republican Senator John Ashcroft ran for reelection to a second term, but he was defeated by Democratic Governor Mel Carnahan despite Carnahan's death in a plane crash three weeks before election day. Roger B. Wilson, the newly inaugurated Governor, appointed Carnahan's widow Jean to fill the seat. This is the most recent time an incumbent US senator lost to a deceased person.
Background[]
In 1998, freshman Senator John Ashcroft briefly considered running for President in 2000. On January 5, 1999, he announced that he would not seek the presidency and would instead seek a second Senate term in the 2000 election.[1] Incumbent two-term Democratic Governor Mel Carnahan ran against Ashcroft.
General election[]
Candidates[]
- John Ashcroft, incumbent U.S. Senator (Republican)
- Mel Carnahan, Governor of Missouri (Democratic) (died October 15th)
- Charles Dockins (Natural Law)
- Hugh Foley (Reform)
- Grant Samuel Stauffer (Libertarian)
- Evaline Taylor (Green)
Campaign[]
In the general election for the state's seat in the U.S. Senate, Ashcroft was facing then-Governor Mel Carnahan in a highly competitive race, despite the Senator having a larger budget than Carnahan, a war chest that included significant contributions from corporations such as Monsanto Company,[2] headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri, which gave five times more to Ashcroft's campaign fund than to the fund of any other congressional hopeful at the time.[3]
Carnahan was killed in a plane crash three weeks before the November election date. Nonetheless, Carnahan's name remained on the ballot due to Missouri's election laws. Lieutenant Governor Roger B. Wilson became Governor upon Carnahan's death, to serve the remaining term of Carnahan's governorship. Ashcroft suspended all campaigning on the day of the plane crash in light of the tragedy and resumed it eight days before the election date.[4]
Results[]
Despite his death, Carnahan won by a margin of approximately fifty thousand votes.[5] He was the first person ever posthumously elected to the United States Senate.[a] Hence, John Ashcroft became the first ever U.S. Senate candidate, incumbent or otherwise, to be defeated by a dead person.[6] A professor of political science at the University of Missouri commented that the incumbent Senator lost the election because his candidacy was "overwhelmed" by a campaign of "emotion and symbolism."[4]
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Mel Carnahan † | 1,191,812 | 50.5 | |||
| Republican | John Ashcroft (incumbent) | 1,142,852 | 48.4 | |||
| Green | Evaline Taylor | 10,612 | 0.5 | |||
| Libertarian | Grant Samuel Stauffer | 10,198 | 0.4 | |||
| Reform | Hugh Foley | 4,166 | 0.2 | |||
| Natural Law | Charles Dockins | 1,933 | 0.1 | |||
| Write-in | 13 | 0.0 | ||||
| Total votes | 2,361,586 | 100.0 | ||||
| Democratic gain from Republican | ||||||
Aftermath[]
Governor Roger B. Wilson appointed Carnahan's 66-year-old widow, Jean Carnahan, to fill the vacant seat until a successor could be duly elected.[7] Ashcroft stated that he hoped the appointment would be "a matter of comfort for Mrs. Carnahan."[citation needed]
Asked by the media whether he would ever seek office again, Ashcroft responded, "The last thing I want to do is think about running for public office again."[4] In December 2000, John Ashcroft was chosen for the position of United States Attorney General by President-elect George W. Bush and his nomination was confirmed by the Senate[8] by a vote of 58 to 42. He served from February 2, 2001 until February 3, 2005.
In 2002, a special election was held in Missouri for the remainder of the six-year term of the state's Senator. Jean Carnahan ran for election to complete the term but was defeated by Republican Jim Talent with a margin of approximately twenty-two thousand votes.[9]
See also[]
- 2000 United States Senate elections
- 2000 United States House of Representatives elections in Missouri
- 2000 United States presidential election in Missouri
- 2000 Missouri gubernatorial election
Notes[]
- ^ In 1962, voters in California elected Clement Woodnutt Miller to the House of Representatives one month after his death in a plane crash. In 1972, two other Representatives, Nick Begich of Alaska and Hale Boggs of Louisiana were re-elected after their plane went missing in the Alaska wilderness. They were both declared dead in absentia after the election.
References[]
- ^ "Ashcroft decides not to jump into 2000 race", CNN, January 5, 1999
- ^ Schanbacher, William D. The Politics of Food: The Global Conflict between Food Security and Food Sovereignty, Praeger Security International; February 26, 2010; ISBN 978-0313363283; p.47
- ^ Harrison, Beth B. Shedding Light on Genetically Engineered Food: What You Don’t Know About the Food You’re Eating and What You Can Do to Protect Yourself, iUniverse, Inc., November 13, 2007, ISBN 978-0595451807
- ^ Jump up to: a b c "The 2000 elections: Missouri; Senator Refuses To Challenge Loss" by John W. Fountain, The New York Times, November 9, 2000
- ^ Jump up to: a b Statistics of the Presidential and Congressioanl Election of November 7, 2000
- ^ "Five people have won election to Congress, despite being dead" by Philip Bump, The Washington Post, October 1, 2014
- ^ Wayne, Stephen J. & Clyde Wilcox. The Election of the Century: The 2000 Election and What it Tells Us About American Politics in the New Millennium, Routledge, February 20, 2002, ISBN 978-0765607430; ch.10
- ^ Attorney General Nominee John Ashcroft's Senate Confirmation Hearing, January 16, 2001
- ^ 2002 Official Election Returns
- United States Senate elections in Missouri
- 2000 United States Senate elections
- 2000 Missouri elections