| Elections in Kentucky |
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The 1998 United States Senate election in Kentucky was held November 3, 1998. It was concurrent with elections to the United States House of Representatives. Incumbent Democratic U.S. Senator Wendell Ford decided to retire, instead of seeking a fifth term. Republican U.S. Representative Jim Bunning narrowly won the open seat, defeating Democratic U.S. Representative Scotty Baesler. This was the first open Senate seat since 1972. By a margin of 0.59%, this election was the second-closest race of the 1998 Senate election cycle, behind only the election in Nevada. Jim Bunning's swearing-in marked the first time since 1973 that Republicans held both United States Senate seats from Kentucky. This was the first open-seat United States Senate election in Kentucky since 1972 and the first open-seat United States Senate election in Kentucky for this seat since 1968.
Democratic primary
Candidates
- Scotty Baesler, U.S. Representative
- Jim Brown
- Steve Henry, Lieutenant Governor
- Charlie Owen, businessman
- Ken Buchanan Thompson
- David L. Williams, member of the Kentucky Senate
Results
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Scotty Baesler | 194,125 | 34.16% | |
| Democratic | Charlie Owen | 166,472 | 29.29% | |
| Democratic | Steve Henry | 156,576 | 27.55% | |
| Democratic | Jim Brown | 19,975 | 3.51% | |
| Democratic | David L. Williams | 16,366 | 2.88% | |
| Democratic | Ken Buchanan Thompson | 14,778 | 2.60% | |
| Total votes | 568,292 | 100.00% | ||
Republican primary
Candidates
- Jim Bunning, U.S. Representative
- Barry Metcalf, State Senator
Results
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Jim Bunning | 152,493 | 74.28% | |
| Republican | Barry Metcalf | 52,798 | 25.72% | |
| Total votes | 205,291 | 100.00% | ||
General election
Candidates
- Scotty Baesler (D), U.S. Representative
- Jim Bunning (R), U.S. Representative
Results
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Jim Bunning | 569,817 | 49.75% | +13.94% | |
| Democratic | Scotty Baesler | 563,051 | 49.16% | -13.73% | |
| Reform | Charles R. Arbegust | 12,546 | 1.10% | ||
| Majority | 6,766 | 0.59% | -26.48% | ||
| Total votes | 1,145,414 | 100.00% | |||
| Republican gain from Democratic | Swing | ||||
See also
References
- ^ "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on November 13, 2010. Retrieved April 17, 2011.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - ^ "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on November 13, 2010. Retrieved April 17, 2011.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on November 13, 2010. Retrieved April 17, 2011.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)