The 1996 United States Senate election in Montana took place on November 5, 1996. Incumbent United States Senator Max Baucus, who was first elected in 1978 and was re-elected in 1984 and 1990, ran for re-election. He was unopposed in the Democratic primary, and moved on to the general election, where he faced a stiff challenge in Denny Rehberg, the Lieutenant Governor of Montana and the Republican nominee. Despite Bob Dole's victory over Bill Clinton and Ross Perot in the state that year in the presidential election, Baucus managed to narrowly win re-election over Rehberg to secure a fourth term in the Senate.
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 County results Baucus: 40–50% 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% Rehberg: 40–50% 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% | |||||||||||||||||
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Democratic primary
editCandidates
edit- Max Baucus, incumbent United States Senator
Results
edit| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Max Baucus (incumbent) | 85,976 | 100.00% | |
| Total votes | 85,976 | 100.00% | ||
Reform primary
editCandidates
edit- Becky Shaw, student loan investigator and 1994 candidate for the Democratic Senate nomination[2]
- Webb Sullivan, retired railroad worker[2]
Results
edit| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Reform | Becky Shaw | 930 | 68.03% | |
| Reform | Webb Sullivan | 437 | 31.97% | |
| Total votes | 1,367 | 100.00% | ||
Republican primary
editCandidates
edit- Denny Rehberg, Lieutenant Governor of Montana
- Ed Borcherdt, businessman
- John K. McDonald, former State Senator
Results
edit| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Denny Rehberg | 82,158 | 73.81% | |
| Republican | Ed Borcherdt | 14,670 | 13.18% | |
| Republican | John K. McDonald | 14,485 | 13.01% | |
| Total votes | 111,313 | 100.00% | ||
General election
editResults
edit| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Max Baucus (incumbent) | 201,935 | 49.56% | −18.57% | |
| Republican | Denny Rehberg | 182,111 | 44.69% | +15.31% | |
| Reform | Becky Shaw | 19,276 | 4.73% | ||
| Natural Law | Stephen Heaton | 4,168 | 1.02% | ||
| Majority | 19,824 | 4.86% | −33.88% | ||
| Turnout | 407,490 | ||||
| Democratic hold | Swing | ||||
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ a b c "1996 Statewide Primary Canvass - June 4, 1996" (PDF). Montana Secretary of State. Archived from the original (PDF) on October 28, 2014. Retrieved July 3, 2014.
- ^ a b Gruenwald, Juliana (June 10, 1996). "Democrat Yellowtail, GOP's Hill To Contend For Montana House Seat". CNN. AllPolitics. Retrieved June 24, 2021.
- ^ "Statistics of the Presidential and Congressional Election of November 5, 1996" (PDF). Clerk of the United States House of Representatives. Retrieved July 3, 2014.