The 1988 United States Senate election in Connecticut took place on November 8, 1988. Incumbent Republican U.S. Senator Lowell Weicker ran for re-election to a fourth term, but was narrowly defeated by Democrat Joe Lieberman, the Connecticut Attorney General and eventual 2000 nominee for Vice President of the United States, who would remain in office until 2013. This is the last time a Connecticut Senator lost re-election.
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Lieberman: 40–50% 50–60% 60–70% Weicker: 40–50% 50–60% 60–70% Tie: 40–50% | |||||||||||||||||
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Both Weicker and Lieberman would go on to win state-wide elections as independents, in 1990 for governor and in 2006 for Senate respectively. Joe Lieberman's swearing-in marked the first time since 1971 that Democrats held both Senate seats from Connecticut.
Lieberman was often considered to the right of Weicker, with him benefiting from the support of National Review founder William F. Buckley Jr., and his brother, former U.S. Senator from New York James Buckley, with William Buckley running columns in support of Lieberman.
General election
editCandidates
edit- Joe Lieberman (D), Connecticut Attorney General
- Lowell P. Weicker Jr. (R), incumbent U.S. Senator since 1971
- Howard A. Grayson Jr. (L)
- Melissa M. Fisher (NAP)
Debates
edit| Dates | Lieberman | Weicker | Link |
|---|---|---|---|
| October 22, 1988 | Participant | Participant | C-SPAN |
Fundraising
edit| Campaign finance reports as of December 31, 1988 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Raised | Spent | Cash on hand |
| Joe Lieberman (D) | $2,650,603 | $2,570,779 | $79,824 |
| Lowell Weicker (R) | $2,781,538 | $2,681,294 | $52,517 |
| Source: Federal Election Commission[1] | |||
Results
edit| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Joe Lieberman | 688,499 | 49.91% | |
| Republican | Lowell Weicker (incumbent) | 677,903 | 49.15% | |
| Libertarian | Howard A. Grayson Jr. | 12,409 | 0.90% | |
| New Alliance | Melissa M. Fisher | 4,154 | 0.30% | |
| Total votes | 1,379,362 | 100.0% | ||
| Democratic gain from Republican | ||||