2010 United States Senate election in Alabama

The 2010 United States Senate election in Alabama took place on November 2, 2010, alongside other elections to the United States Senate in other states, as well as elections to the United States House of Representatives and various state and local elections. Incumbent Republican Senator Richard Shelby won re-election to a fifth term.

2010 United States Senate election in Alabama

← 2004 November 2, 2010 2016 →
 
Nominee Richard Shelby William G. Barnes
Party Republican Democratic
Popular vote 968,181 515,619
Percentage 65.18% 34.71%

County results
Shelby:      50–60%      60–70%      70–80%      80–90%
Barnes:      50–60%      60–70%      70–80%      80–90%

U.S. senator before election

Richard Shelby
Republican

Elected U.S. Senator

Richard Shelby
Republican

Background

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In 1986, Shelby won the Democratic nomination for the Senate seat held by Republican Jeremiah Denton, the first Republican elected to the Senate from Alabama since Reconstruction. He won a very close race as the Democrats regained control of the Senate. He was easily re-elected in 1992 even as Bill Clinton lost Alabama's electoral votes.

On November 9, 1994, Shelby switched his party affiliation to Republican, one day after the Republicans won control of both houses in the midterm elections, giving the Republicans a 53–47 majority in the Senate. He won his first full term as a Republican in 1998 by a large margin, and faced no significant opposition in 2004.

Shelby was popular in Alabama. A September 2009 poll showed he had a 58% approval rating, with 35% disapproving.[1]

Republican primary

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Candidates

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Polling

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Poll source Date(s)
administered
Sample
size
Margin
of error
Richard
Shelby
Clint
Moser
Other Undecided
Research 2000[3] May 10–12, 2010 600 ± 4.0% 63% 14% 23%

Results

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Republican primary results[4]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Richard Shelby (incumbent) 405,042 84.34%
Republican Clint Moser 75,190 15.66%
Total votes 480,232 100.00%

Democratic primary

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Candidates

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  • William G. Barnes, attorney
  • Simone De Moore, teacher and soul singer[5]

Polling

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Poll source Date(s)
administered
Sample
size
Margin
of error
William
Barnes
Simone De
Moore
Other Undecided
Research 2000[3] May 10–12, 2010 600 ± 4.0% 39% 11% 3% 47%

Results

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County results
Democratic primary results[4]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic William G. Barnes 160,737 60.77%
Democratic Simone De Moore 103,784 39.23%
Total votes 264,521 100.00%

General election

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Candidates

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  • William G. Barnes (D), attorney
  • Richard Shelby (R), incumbent U.S. Senator since 1987

Campaign

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Shelby, who switched from Democrat to Republican in the mid-1990s, was a popular senator in Alabama for three decades, first elected in 1986. He has over $17 million in the bank, one of the highest of any candidate in the country. Recently, he became even more popular in his opposition to the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) and the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008, as the ranking member of the Senate Banking Committee.

In May, Shelby told reporters "I don't even know who my opponent is."[6]

Predictions

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Source Ranking As of
Cook Political Report[7] Solid R October 26, 2010
Rothenberg[8] Safe R October 22, 2010
RealClearPolitics[9] Safe R October 26, 2010
Sabato's Crystal Ball[10] Safe R October 21, 2010
CQ Politics[11] Safe R October 26, 2010

Polling

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Poll source Date(s)
administered
Sample
size
Margin
of error
Richard
Shelby (R)
William G.
Barnes (D)
Other Undecided
Rasmussen Reports (report) March 29, 2010 500 ± 4.5% 59% 32% 3% 6%
Research 2000 (report) May 17–19, 2010 600 ± 4.0% 57% 33% 3% 7%
Rasmussen Reports (report) May 25, 2010 500 ± 4.5% 58% 31% 3% 8%
Rasmussen Reports (report) June 3, 2010 500 ± 4.5% 58% 31% 3% 7%
Rasmussen Reports (report) July 22, 2010 500 ± 4.5% 59% 29% 6% 6%
Rasmussen Reports (report) August 19, 2010 500 ± 4.5% 60% 28% 2% 10%
Rasmussen Reports (report) September 21, 2010 500 ± 4.5% 58% 30% 4% 8%
Hypothetical polling

Richard Shelby vs. generic Democrat

Poll source Date(s)
administered
Sample
size
Margin of
error
Richard
Shelby (R)
Generic
Democrat
Undecided
Public Policy Polling[12] March 27–29, 2010 1,270 ±2.8% 55% 37% 8%

Fundraising

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Candidate (party) Receipts Disbursements Cash on hand Debt
Richard Shelby (R) $5,103,288 $1,456,041 $17,028,219 $0
William Barnes (D) $0 $0 $0 $0
Source: Federal Election Commission[13]

Results

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2010 United States Senate election in Alabama[14]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Republican Richard Shelby (incumbent) 968,181 65.18% −2.37%
Democratic William G. Barnes 515,619 34.71% +2.36%
Write-in 1,699 0.11% +0.01%
Total votes 1,485,499 100.00%
Republican hold

Counties that flipped from Republican to Democratic

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References

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  1. ^ "News Poll #15743". SurveyUSA. August 31, 2009. Retrieved August 29, 2010.
  2. ^ "Alabama GOP". Alabama2010.com. Retrieved June 14, 2010.[permanent dead link]
  3. ^ a b Research 2000
  4. ^ a b "Alabama US Senate Primary Results". Politico. June 1, 2010. Retrieved June 1, 2010.
  5. ^ "Candidates". Alabama Democratic Party Directory. Archived from the original on May 27, 2010. Retrieved June 14, 2010.
  6. ^ Orol, Ronald (May 28, 2010). "Smooth sailing for Alabama's Shelby". Election Blog. MarketWatch. Archived from the original on July 14, 2011. Retrieved June 14, 2010.
  7. ^ "Senate". Cook Political Report. Archived from the original on September 19, 2010. Retrieved October 26, 2010.
  8. ^ "Senate Ratings". Rothenberg Political Report. Retrieved October 26, 2010.
  9. ^ "Battle for the Senate". RealClearPolitics. Retrieved October 26, 2010.
  10. ^ "2010 Senate Ratings". Sabato's Crystal Ball. Archived from the original on October 28, 2010. Retrieved October 26, 2010.
  11. ^ "Race Ratings Chart: Senate". CQ Politics. Archived from the original on October 28, 2010. Retrieved October 26, 2010.
  12. ^ Public Policy Polling
  13. ^ "2010 House and Senate Campaign Finance for Alabama". fec.gov. Retrieved August 12, 2010.[permanent dead link]
  14. ^ "2010 General Election Results" (PDF). Alabama Secretary of State.
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Official candidate websites