1994 United States Senate election in Virginia
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| Turnout | 43.6% (voting eligible)[1] | ||||||||||||||||||||
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 Results by County Robb: 40-50% 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% 80–90% North: 40–50% 50–60% 60–70% | |||||||||||||||||||||
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 State government
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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.
Contents
1 Campaign
2 General election
2.1 Candidates
2.2 Polling
2.3 Results
3 See also
4 References
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.[2]
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.[3]
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.
General election
Candidates
Chuck Robb (D), incumbent U.S. Senator since 1989 and former Governor of Virginia
Oliver North (R), Marine Corps veteran
Marshall Coleman (I), former Attorney General of Virginia and former member of the Virginia Republican Party
Polling
| Source | Date | Robb (D) | North (R) | Coleman (I) | 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
| 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 | 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 | ||||
See also
- United States Senate elections, 1994
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..mw-parser-output cite.citation{font-style:inherit}.mw-parser-output .citation q{quotes:"""""""'""'"}.mw-parser-output .citation .cs1-lock-free a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/65/Lock-green.svg/9px-Lock-green.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center}.mw-parser-output .citation .cs1-lock-limited a,.mw-parser-output .citation .cs1-lock-registration a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d6/Lock-gray-alt-2.svg/9px-Lock-gray-alt-2.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center}.mw-parser-output .citation .cs1-lock-subscription a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/aa/Lock-red-alt-2.svg/9px-Lock-red-alt-2.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center}.mw-parser-output .cs1-subscription,.mw-parser-output .cs1-registration{color:#555}.mw-parser-output .cs1-subscription span,.mw-parser-output .cs1-registration span{border-bottom:1px dotted;cursor:help}.mw-parser-output .cs1-ws-icon a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4c/Wikisource-logo.svg/12px-Wikisource-logo.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center}.mw-parser-output code.cs1-code{color:inherit;background:inherit;border:inherit;padding:inherit}.mw-parser-output .cs1-hidden-error{display:none;font-size:100%}.mw-parser-output .cs1-visible-error{font-size:100%}.mw-parser-output .cs1-maint{display:none;color:#33aa33;margin-left:0.3em}.mw-parser-output .cs1-subscription,.mw-parser-output .cs1-registration,.mw-parser-output .cs1-format{font-size:95%}.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-left,.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-wl-left{padding-left:0.2em}.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-right,.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-wl-right{padding-right:0.2em}
^ 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.
^ http://clerk.house.gov/member_info/electionInfo/1994/94Stat.htm
