2006 United States Senate election in Rhode Island
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The 2006 United States Senate election in Rhode Island was held on November 7, 2006. Incumbent Republican Lincoln Chafee sought re-election to a second full term in office, the seat he had held since 1999 when he was appointed to fill the vacancy created by the death of his father John Chafee. He lost to Democratic nominee, former state Attorney General Sheldon Whitehouse by a 7-point margin.[1] Lincoln Chafee later left the Republican Party in September 2007 before running successfully as an Independent for Governor of Rhode Island in 2010.
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November 7, 2006
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Whitehouse: 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% Chafee: 50–60% 60–70% | |||||||||||||||||
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Whitehouse carried Providence County, which contains approximately 60% of the state's population, with 59% to Chafee's 41%. Chafee's strongest showing was in Washington County (South County), where he took 55% of the vote against Whitehouse's 45%. After the election, when asked by a reporter if he thought his defeat would help the country by giving Democrats control of Congress, Chafee replied, "to be honest, yes."[2]
As of 2023[update], this was the last time the Republican candidates won the counties of Bristol and Washington in a statewide election. Democrats won this Senate seat for the first time since 1970; this also marked the first time since that election that the winner of Rhode Island's Class 1 Senate seat was not a member of the Chafee family. Chafee would go on to run for governor and was elected in 2010. Sheldon Whitehouse's inauguration or swearing-in marked the first time since the resignation of John Pastore in 1976 that Democrats held both Senate seats from Rhode Island.
Along with Maine and Pennsylvania, this was one of the three Republican-held Senate seats up for election in a state that John Kerry won in the 2004 presidential election.
Democratic primary
Candidates
- Carl Sheeler, Marine veteran
- Sheldon Whitehouse, former Attorney General of Rhode Island and former U.S. Attorney for the District of Rhode Island
- Christopher F. Young, activist and perennial candidate
Withdrew
- Matt Brown, secretary of state of Rhode Island (endorsed Whitehouse)
Campaign
Whitehouse was endorsed by U.S. Senator Jack Reed, U.S. Congressmen Jim Langevin and Patrick J. Kennedy, as well as by former candidate Matt Brown. Sheeler, a former U.S. Marine, a business owner, and an adjunct professor of business, ran on a more progressive platform. Ultimately, however, Whitehouse would trounce his competition in the primary on September 12, winning his party's support by a large margin.
Results
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Sheldon Whitehouse | 69,290 | 81.53 | |
| Democratic | Christopher F. Young | 8,939 | 10.52 | |
| Democratic | Carl Sheeler | 6,755 | 7.95 | |
| Total votes | 84,984 | 100.00 | ||
Republican primary
Candidates
- Lincoln Chafee, incumbent U.S. Senator
- Steve Laffey, Mayor of Cranston
Campaign
Incumbent Lincoln Chafee was one of the most liberal members of the Republican Party in the Senate by 2006, and was challenged for the Republican nomination by Laffey who had criticized Chafee for his liberal voting record in the Senate. In early 2006, the Club for Growth, a pro-tax cut political action committee, sent a series of mailings to Rhode Island Republicans attacking Chafee's positions and voting record.
The national GOP supported Chafee in the primary campaign, believing that he was the most likely candidate to hold the seat in the general election. Senator Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, Senator John McCain of Arizona and First Lady Laura Bush appeared at fundraisers for Chafee, while Senator Bill Frist's PAC donated to Chafee. The National Republican Senatorial Committee also ran ads in the state supporting Chafee. Steve Laffey, however, picked up many endorsements from Republican town committees throughout Rhode Island, the national group Club for Growth, and former candidate for the party's presidential nomination Steve Forbes. On July 10, 2006, the National Republican Senatorial Committee filed a complaint with the Federal Election Commission against Laffey, saying that he had included a political communication in tax bills mailed to residents of Cranston.[4]
Debates
- Complete video of debate, August 23, 2006 - C-SPAN
- Complete video of debate, August 26, 2006 - C-SPAN
Polling
| Source | Date | Lincoln Chafee |
Steve Laffey |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rhode Island College[5] | April 2006 | 56% | 28% |
| American Research Group[6] | May 5, 2006 | 48% | 39% |
| Club for Growth/National Research Inc.[7] | June 2, 2006 | 45% | 44% |
| Rhode Island College[8] | June 2006 | 39% | 38% |
| Rhode Island College[9] | August 28–30, 2006 | 34% | 51% |
| RNSC/Public Opinion Strategies[10] | August 30, 2006 | 53% | 39% |
Results
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Lincoln Chafee (incumbent) | 34,936 | 54.18 | |
| Republican | Steve Laffey | 29,547 | 45.82 | |
| Total votes | 64,483 | 100.00 | ||
General election
Candidates
- Lincoln Chafee (R), incumbent U.S. Senator
- Sheldon Whitehouse (D), former state Attorney General
Campaign
Democrats believed that this was one of the most likely Senate seats to switch party control, due to the Democratic tilt of Rhode Island, as well as Chafee's need to expend part of his campaign fund to win the Republican primary election. Chafee's approval ratings also took a beating from his primary battle with Laffey and may have hurt him in the general election. Another factor that hurt Chafee was that Whitehouse, the Democratic nominee, had a huge head start on him, as he was able to campaign with little opposition for at least half the year and had not had to contend with a major opponent until the general election campaign. Rhode Islanders' historically large disapproval ratings for President George W. Bush and the Republican Party as a whole was another major hurdle for Chafee.
Debates
- Complete video of debate, October 19, 2006 - C-SPAN
- Complete video of debate, October 30, 2006 - C-SPAN
Issues
Whitehouse and Chafee did not have large differences on political issues. On social issues, they were almost entirely in agreement with each other. Chafee was also against the Bush tax cuts. On fiscal issues, such as social security and trade, they were however in disagreement.
- Abortion
- Chafee - pro-choice
- Whitehouse - pro-choice
- Stem-Cell research
- Chafee - support
- Whitehouse - support
- Death penalty
- Chafee - strongly opposes
- Whitehouse - support in federal level, but not in state level
- Gay Marriage
- Chafee - supports
- Whitehouse - supports
- Privatizing Social Security
- Chafee - Partially Supports
- Whitehouse - Strongly Against
- Bush Tax Cuts
- Chafee - Strongly against
- Whitehouse - Strongly against
- Vouchers
- Chafee - rated 55% by NEA, representing a mixed record
- Whitehouse - Strongly against
- Federal Spending on Health Care
- Chafee - Strongly supports
- Whitehouse - Strongly supports
- PATRIOT Act
- Chafee - supports
- Whitehouse - against
- Free Trade
- Chafee - supports
- Whitehouse - against
Predictions
| Source | Ranking | As of |
|---|---|---|
| The Cook Political Report[13] | Tossup | November 6, 2006 |
| Sabato's Crystal Ball[14] | Lean D (flip) | November 6, 2006 |
| Rothenberg Political Report[15] | Lean D (flip) | November 6, 2006 |
| Real Clear Politics[16] | Tossup | November 6, 2006 |
Polling
| Source | Date | Sheldon Whitehouse (D) |
Lincoln Chafee (R) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Brown University[17] | September 13, 2005 | 25% | 38% |
| Brown University[18] | February 8, 2006 | 34% | 40% |
| Rasmussen[19] | February 11, 2006 | 38% | 50% |
| Rhode Island College[20] | April 2006 | 32% | 51% |
| Rasmussen[21] | May 4, 2006 | 41% | 44% |
| Rasmussen[22] | June 5, 2006 | 42% | 44% |
| Rhode Island College[23] | June 21, 2006 | 40% | 43% |
| Brown University[24] | June 26, 2006 | 38% | 37% |
| Rasmussen[25] | July 18, 2006 | 46% | 41% |
| Rasmussen[26] | August 9, 2006 | 44% | 38% |
| Fleming & Associates[27] | August 24, 2006 | 42% | 43% |
| Rasmussen[28] | September 3, 2006 | 44% | 42% |
| Rasmussen[29] | September 17, 2006 | 51% | 43% |
| Brown University[30] | September 16–18, 2006 | 40% | 39% |
| American Research Group[31] | September 19, 2006 | 45% | 40% |
| Mason-Dixon/MSNBC[32] | October 2, 2006 | 42% | 41% |
| Reuters/Zogby[33] | October 5, 2006 | 45% | 41% |
| USA Today/Gallup[34] | October 6, 2006 | 50% | 39% |
| Rasmussen[35] | October 10, 2006 | 49% | 39% |
| Rhode Island College[36] | October 10, 2006 | 40% | 37% |
| Fleming & Associates[37] | October 19, 2006 | 46% | 42% |
| Rasmussen[38] | October 19, 2006 | 50% | 42% |
| Mason-Dixon/MSNBC[39] | October 24, 2006 | 48% | 43% |
| Rhode Island College[40] | October 27, 2006 | 51% | 43% |
| Reuters/Zogby[41] | November 2, 2006 | 53% | 39% |
| Mason-Dixon/MSNBC[42] | November 5, 2006 | 45% | 46% |
| USA Today/Gallup[43] | November 5, 2006 | 48% | 45% |
with Steve Laffey
| Source | Date | Sheldon Whitehouse (D) |
Steve Laffey (R) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Brown University[44] | September 13, 2005 | 35% | 25% |
| Brown University[45] | February 8, 2006 | 44% | 29% |
| Brown University[46] | June 26, 2006 | 55% | 25% |
Results
Whitehouse defeated Chafee in his bid for a second full term. Whitehouse lost every county except Providence County, home to the majority of the state's residents. His victory here was enough to win the state.
As a testament to how Democratic Rhode Island had become, this marked the last Senate election where a Republican received more than 40% of the vote or won a county. Chafee himself would later leave the Republican Party and serve as Governor of Rhode Island as an Independent. He later joined the Democratic Party, running for president in 2016.
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Sheldon Whitehouse | 206,043 | 53.52% | +12.37% | |
| Republican | Lincoln Chafee (incumbent) | 178,950 | 46.48% | −10.40% | |
| Total votes | 384,993 | 100.00% | N/A | ||
| Democratic gain from Republican | |||||
By county
| Sheldon Whitehouse Democratic |
Lincoln Chafee Republican |
Others | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| County | Votes | % | Votes | % | Votes | % |
| Bristol | 10,435 | 49.6% | 10,554 | 50.1% | 66 | 0.3% |
| Kent | 34,349 | 47.1% | 38,370 | 52.6% | 240 | 0.3% |
| Newport | 16,609 | 49.2% | 17,050 | 50.5% | 114 | 0.3% |
| Providence | 119,618 | 58.9% | 82,679 | 40.7% | 682 | 0.3% |
| Washington | 25,098 | 45.1% | 30,348 | 54.6% | 152 | 0.3% |
Counties that flipped from Republican to Democratic
- Providence (largest municipality: Providence)