The 2008 United States Senate special election in Mississippi was held on November 4, 2008. This election was held on the same day of Thad Cochran's re-election bid in the regularly scheduled Class II election. The winner of this special election served the rest of the Senate term, which ended in January 2013. Unlike most Senate elections, this was a non-partisan election in which the candidate who got a majority of the vote won, and if the first-place candidate did not get 50%, a runoff election with the top two candidates would have been held. In the election, no run-off was necessary as Republican nominee and incumbent Republican U.S. Senator Roger Wicker won election to finish the term.
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Background
edit
On December 18, 2007, U.S. Senator Trent Lott resigned in his fourth-term to pursue "something else" in the private sector.[1][2] He ended up starting his own lobbying firm.
Mississippi law stated that the Governor of Mississippi had ten days after receiving official notification of the vacancy to appoint an interim senator pending a special election. On December 31, thirteen days after Lott's resignation, Governor Haley Barbour appointed U.S. Representative Roger Wicker.[3][4][5][6]
Scheduling lawsuit
editBarbour scheduled the special election for November 4, 2008.[4] Mississippi Attorney General Jim Hood, a member of the Democratic Party, issued a non-binding opinion that the election must be held within one hundred days of Lott's resignation (no later than March 30, 2008), and sued Barbour in Hinds County Circuit Court, arguing that Barbour had 10 days to set a special election within 90 days (no later than March 29, 2008).[7][8] Hood argued the date of the special election to be March 11, the same day as Mississippi's presidential primary.[9] Governor Barbour claimed that the definition of "year" in the law in question is 365 days. Mississippi Secretary of State Eric Clark, the state's chief elections officer and a fellow Democrat, backed the governor's position.[10]
Judge Bobby DeLaughter ruled that the election must take place no later than March 19.[11] On February 6, 2008, after Barbour appealed to the Mississippi Supreme Court, which reversed Judge Delaughter and ruled that the non-partisan special election may be held on November 4.[12][13]
General election
editCandidates
editNote: Mississippi special elections are nonpartisan. Party labels are for informational purposes only.
- Ronnie Musgrove, former Governor[14][15] (Democratic)
- Roger Wicker, incumbent U.S. Senator (Republican)
Withdrew
edit- Ronnie Shows, former U.S. Representative from Bassfield (Democratic) (withdrew February 19, 2008) (endorsed Musgrove)
Declined
edit- Mike Epsy, former U.S. Secretary of Agriculture and U.S. Representative from Yazoo City (Democratic)
- Harvey Johnson Jr., former mayor of Jackson (Democratic)
- Mike Moore, former Mississippi Attorney General (Democratic)
Former Governor Ronnie Musgrove, former U.S. Representative and Secretary of Agriculture Mike Espy, former Jackson mayor Harvey Johnson, Jr., former Governor Ray Mabus, and former Mississippi Attorney General Mike Moore were all considered potential Democratic candidates.[14][16] Of the five, only Musgrove decided to run. Former congressman Ronnie Shows also decided to run, but withdrew on February 19, 2008, after determining that he could not raise enough funds to effectively campaign against Wicker and Musgrove. Shows gave his endorsement to Musgrove.[17][18]
Predictions
edit| Source | Ranking | As of |
|---|---|---|
| The Cook Political Report[19] | Tossup | October 23, 2008 |
| CQ Politics[20] | Lean R | October 31, 2008 |
| Rothenberg Political Report[21] | Lean R | November 2, 2008 |
| Real Clear Politics[22] | Lean R | October 29, 2008 |
Polling
edit| Poll Source | Date(s) administered | Ronnie Musgrove |
Roger Wicker |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rasmussen Reports[23] | October 27, 2008 | 43% | 54% |
| Rasmussen Reports[23] | September 30, 2008 | 47% | 49% |
| Rasmussen Reports[23] | August 23, 2008 | 42% | 47% |
| Rasmussen Reports[23] | July 28, 2008 | 42% | 48% |
| Rasmussen Reports[23] | June 26, 2008 | 47% | 48% |
| Rasmussen Reports[24] | May 27, 2008 | 47% | 46% |
Results
edit| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nonpartisan | Roger Wicker (incumbent) | 683,409 | 54.96% | −8.62% | |
| Nonpartisan | Ronnie Musgrove | 560,064 | 45.04% | +10.17% | |
| Majority | 123,345 | 9.92% | −18.79% | ||
| Total votes | 1,243,473 | 100.00% | |||
| Republican hold | |||||
Counties that flipped from Republican to Democratic
edit- Adams (Largest city: Natchez)
- Chickasaw (Largest city: Houston)
- Clay (Largest city: West Point)
- Copiah (Largest city: Hazlehurst)
- Jasper (Largest city: Bay Springs)
- Kemper (Largest city: De Kalb)
- Panola (Largest city: Batesville)
- Pike (Largest city: McComb)
- Tallahatchie (Largest city: Charleston)
- LeFlore (Largest city: Greenwood)
See also
edit- 2008 United States Senate elections
- Mississippi's 1st congressional district special election, 2008, an election to fill Roger Wicker's former U.S. House of Representatives seat.
References
edit- ^ Nossiter, Adam & Herszenhorn, David M. (November 26, 2007). "Mississippi's Lott to Leave Senate Seat". The New York Times.
- ^ Congressional Quarterly, December 19, 2007 Archived January 4, 2009, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Bloomberg: Wicker Named to Replace Mississippi's Lott in Senate
- ^ a b Hattiesburg American: Barbour to name leader to fill Lott's seat
- ^ http://www.clarionledger.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071231/NEWS/712310319/1001/news Jackson Clarion-Ledger Senate Pick to be Unveiled Today
- ^ Wicker launches Senate campaign | clarionledger.com | The Clarion-Ledger[permanent dead link]
- ^ FOX News: Trent Lott Resigns From U.S. Senate After Nearly Two Decades of Service
- ^ "WLBT 3 – Jackson, MS: Hood Files Suit to Have Special Election Earlier". Archived from the original on January 4, 2008. Retrieved January 3, 2008.
- ^ "WLBT 3 – Jackson, MS: AG Challenges Timing of Senate Election". Archived from the original on January 4, 2008. Retrieved January 3, 2008.
- ^ The ClarionLedger: AG opinion backs Democrats on timing of election
- ^ Judge: AG right in election date spat | clarionledger.com | The Clarion-Ledger
- ^ "WLBT 3 – Jackson, MS: Barbour's Attorney Appeals Special-Elex Ruling". Archived from the original on December 6, 2008. Retrieved January 17, 2008.
- ^ djournal.com
- ^ a b "Wicker Launches Senate Campaign"[permanent dead link], The Clarion-Ledger, January 1, 2008
- ^ "Former governor Musgrove to run for U.S. Senate". Archived from the original on January 8, 2008. Retrieved January 7, 2008.
- ^ Democrat Finally Jumps into Mississippi Senate Race Yahoo! News January 7, 2008
- ^ Shows out of Senate race for Lott's seat | clarionledger.com | The Clarion-Ledger
- ^ Associated Press via The Hattiesburg American, January 5, 2008
- ^ "2008 Senate Race ratings for October 23, 2008". The Cook Political Report. Retrieved April 1, 2021.
- ^ Race Ratings Chart: Senate Archived October 28, 2010, at the Wayback Machine CQ Politics
- ^ "2008 Senate ratings". Inside Elections. Retrieved April 1, 2021.
- ^ "2008 RCP Averages & Senate Results". Real Clear Politics. Retrieved August 31, 2021.
- ^ a b c d e Rasmussen Reports
- ^ Rasmussen Reports
- ^ "US Senate Special Election Official Certification" (PDF). Mississippi Secretary of State. Retrieved January 10, 2009.