The 2000 United States Senate election in Rhode Island was held on November 7, 2000. Republican U.S. Senator John Chafee had announced in 1999 that he would not seek reelection, leading his son, Lincoln Chafee, to announce his own candidacy. The elder Chafee, however, died a few months later; his son was appointed to fill the remainder of the unexpired term. The younger Chafee, now the incumbent, sought a full term and won, defeating Democratic U.S. Representative Bob Weygand. As of 2024[update], this was the last congressional election in Rhode Island to be won by a Republican.
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Chafee: 40–50% 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% Weygand: 50–60% | |||||||||||||||||
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Democratic primary
editCandidates
edit- Robert Weygand, U.S. Representative
- Richard A. Licht, former Lieutenant Governor of Rhode Island and nominee for the United States Senate in 1988
Results
editWeygand defeated former nominee Licht in the Democratic primary by a fair margin.
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Robert Weygand | 51,769 | 57.49 | |
| Democratic | Richard A. Licht | 38,281 | 42.51 | |
| Total votes | 90,050 | 100.00 | ||
Republican primary
editCandidates
edit- Lincoln Chafee, incumbent U.S. Senator
Results
edit| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Lincoln Chafee (Incumbent) | 2,221 | 100.00 | |
| Total votes | 2,221 | 100.00 | ||
General election
editAt a state and federal level, Rhode Island has been one of the most Democratic states in the country since the 1930s. The state voted Republican only in landslide presidential elections. In the concurrent 2000 presidential election, Al Gore was safely favored to win by the state.
Nonetheless, former Senator John Chafee managed to continually win re-election as a moderate Republican. Chafee died in 1999 and his son, Lincoln, was appointed to the seat. Lincoln Chafee similarly was a moderate Republican as Mayor of Warwick.
In the general election, Republican Chafee won a full term with 57% of the vote to his opponent due to heavy ticket splitting. Al Gore carried Rhode Island in the concurrent presidential election with 61% of the vote.
Candidates
edit- Lincoln Chafee (R), incumbent U.S. Senator
- Kenneth Proulx (I)
- Robert Weygand (D), U.S. Representative
- Christopher Young (Re)
Debates
edit- Complete video of debate, September 24, 2000
- Complete video of debate, November 1, 2000
Results
edit| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Lincoln Chafee (Incumbent) | 222,588 | 56.88% | −7.65% | |
| Democratic | Robert Weygand | 161,023 | 41.15% | +5.67% | |
| Reform | Christopher Young | 4,107 | 1.05% | ||
| Independent | Kenneth Proulx | 3,635 | 0.93% | ||
| Majority | 61,565 | 15.73% | −13.32% | ||
| Turnout | 391,353 | ||||
| Republican hold | Swing | ||||
See also
editNotes
edit- ^ In October 1999, Chafee was appointed by Governor Lincoln Almond to fill the vacancy caused by the death of (his father) Senator John Chafee.
References
edit- ^ "Results summary". www.elections.state.ri.us. 2000. Archived from the original (PHP) on March 3, 2016. Retrieved May 7, 2021.
- ^ "Results summary". www.elections.state.ri.us. 2000. Archived from the original (PHP) on March 3, 2016. Retrieved May 7, 2021.
- ^ "Office of the Clerk, U.S. House of Representatives". Office of the Clerk, U.S. House of Representatives. Retrieved May 7, 2021.