2002 United States Senate election in Tennessee

2002 United States Senate election in Tennessee

← 1996 November 5, 2002 2008 →

Nominee Lamar Alexander Bob Clement Party Republican Democratic Popular vote 891,420 728,295 Percentage 54.27% 44.34%

County results Alexander:      40-50%      50-60%      60-70%      70-80% Clement:      40–50%      50–60%      60–70%

U.S. senator before election Fred Thompson Republican Elected U.S. Senator Lamar Alexander Republican

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The 2002 United States Senate election in Tennessee was held on November 5, 2002. Incumbent Republican U.S. Senator Fred Thompson decided to retire. Republican Lamar Alexander won the open seat.

Republican primary[]

Candidates[]

• Lamar Alexander, former U.S. Secretary of Education, former Governor of Tennessee
• Ed Bryant, U.S. Representative
• Mary Taylor-Shelby, perennial candidate
• June Griffin, activist
• Michael Brent Todd
• James E. DuBose
• Christopher G. Fenner

Results[]

Republican Primary results^[1]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Lamar Alexander	295,052	53.79%
	Republican	Ed Bryant	233,678	42.60%
	Republican	Mary Taylor-Shelby	5,589	1.02%
	Republican	June Griffin	4,930	0.90%
	Republican	Michael Brent Todd	4,002	0.73%
	Republican	James E. DuBose	3,572	0.65%
	Republican	Christopher G. Fenner	1,552	0.28%
	Republican	Write-ins	107	0.03%
Total votes			548,482	100.00%

Democratic primary[]

Candidates[]

• Bob Clement, U.S. Representative
• Gary G. Davis, perennial candidate
• Cher A. Hopkey
• Michael L. Hampstead
• Alvin M. Strauss

Results[]

Democratic primary results^[2]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Bob Clement	418,172	82.18%
	Democratic	Gary G. Davis	50,563	9.94%
	Democratic	Cher A. Hopkey	14,481	2.85%
	Democratic	Michael L. Hampstead	12,940	2.54%
	Democratic	Alvin M. Strauss	12,241	2.41%
	Democratic	Write-ins	478	0.08%
Total votes			508,875	100.00%

General election[]

Campaign[]

Alexander raised $2 million through June 2002.^[3] Clement attacked the Governor for his corporate connections and business dealings. By October, Clement had nearly raised $900,000, while Alexander raised almost $3 million.^[4] Bush, who had a 60% approval rating in the state, helped campaign and raise money for Alexander.^[5] Alexander was also endorsed by the NRA.^[6]

Debates[]

• Complete video of debate, September 30, 2002
• Complete video of debate, October 6, 2002
• Complete video of debate, October 13, 2002
• Complete video of debate, October 20, 2002

Predictions[]

Source	Ranking	As of
Sabato's Crystal Ball[7]	Likely R	November 4, 2002

Polling[]

Poll source	Date(s) administered	Sample size[a]	Margin of error	Lamar Alexander (R)	Bob Clement (D)	Other / Undecided
SurveyUSA	October 26–28, 2002	726 (LV)	± 3.8%	52%	41%	7%

In a September poll from the Knoxville News Sentinel, Alexander was up 45% to 27%. In a DNSC poll during the same month, Alexander was up 49% to 42%. In a mid October Zogby poll had the governor leading 49% to 36%.^[8] A late October WREG-TV poll had Alexander leading 45% to 36%.^[9]

Results[]

United States Senate election in Tennessee, 2002^[10]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Republican	Lamar Alexander	891,498	54.28%	-7.09%
	Democratic	Bob Clement	728,232	44.34%	+7.52%
	Independent	John Jay Hooker	6,401	0.39%
	Independent	Wesley M. Baker	6,106	0.37%
	Independent	Connie Gammon	5,349	0.33%
	Independent	Karl Stanley Davidson	2,217	0.13%
	Independent	Basil Marceaux	1,170	0.07%
	Write-ins		356	0.02%
Majority			163,266	9.94%	-14.61%
Turnout			1,642,432
	Republican hold		Swing

See also[]

• 2002 United States Senate elections

Notes[]

References[]