1994 United States Senate election in Pennsylvania
January 20, 2023
The 1994 United States Senate election in Pennsylvania was held November 8, 1994. Incumbent Democratic U.S. Senator Harris Wofford, who was appointed to the position in 1991 and won a special election the same year, sought re-election to a full six-year term, but he was defeated by Republican Rick Santorum.[1] By a margin of 2.5%, this election was the second-closest race of the 1994 Senate election cycle, behind only the election in California.
1994 United States Senate election in Pennsylvania
Wofford's campaign was hurt from the outset by his strong connection with President Bill Clinton's failed healthcare reform proposals; Wofford had made working toward universal healthcare a crucial issue in his prior campaign and was one of the executive's strongest allies on the issue. After this failure, however, the senator ran a relatively passive campaign. He instead attempted to focus attention on his challenger, an arch-conservative who did not attempt to moderate his views after the primary election. The polarizing Santorum took strong positions against abortion, gay rights, and affirmative action, and he even clashed with some of the traditional fixtures of the state's moderate Republican establishment. Early in the campaign and with little statewide name recognition, Santorum made a critical error by attacking Social Security, and Wofford appeared to be in relatively safe position. However, Santorum ran an effective grassroots campaign and specifically targeted many union Democrats who had reservations about the liberal social values advocated by many of their party's leaders.[2]
In the closing weeks of the campaign, Santorum was greatly helped by strong Republican enthusiasm because of anger over Clinton's failed initiatives. He solidified his status by running a series of positive ads that attempted to define his character strengths and to contrast with Wofford's negative commercials. Santorum eventually received a close victory by performing well (and nearly winning) his home in the suburban Pittsburgh region and through particularly low turnout in Democratic strongholds, such as Philadelphia, Scranton, and Pittsburgh.[2]
^ ab"Statistics of the Congressional Election of November 8, 1994" (PDF). Office of the Clerk of the U.S. House. Retrieved July 9, 2014.
^ abKennedy, John J. (2006). Pennsylvania Elections: Statewide Contests from 1950-2004. University Press of America. ISBN9780761832799. Retrieved 18 March 2021.
January 20, 2023
1994, united, states, senate, election, pennsylvania, held, november, 1994, incumbent, democratic, senator, harris, wofford, appointed, position, 1991, special, election, same, year, sought, election, full, year, term, defeated, republican, rick, santorum, mar. The 1994 United States Senate election in Pennsylvania was held November 8 1994 Incumbent Democratic U S Senator Harris Wofford who was appointed to the position in 1991 and won a special election the same year sought re election to a full six year term but he was defeated by Republican Rick Santorum 1 By a margin of 2 5 this election was the second closest race of the 1994 Senate election cycle behind only the election in California 1994 United States Senate election in Pennsylvania 1991 special November 8 1994 2000 Nominee Rick Santorum Harris WoffordParty Republican DemocraticPopular vote 1 735 691 1 648 481Percentage 49 4 46 9 County results Santorum 40 50 50 60 60 70 70 80 Wofford 40 50 50 60 70 80 U S senator before electionHarris WoffordDemocratic Elected U S Senator Rick SantorumRepublican Contents 1 Democratic primary 1 1 Candidates 1 2 Results 2 Republican primary 2 1 Candidates 2 2 Results 3 General election 3 1 Candidates 3 2 Campaign 3 3 Debates 3 4 Results 4 See also 5 ReferencesDemocratic primary EditCandidates Edit Harris Wofford incumbent U S SenatorResults Edit Democratic primary results Party Candidate Votes Democratic Harris Wofford incumbent UnopposedTotal votes 714 930 100 00 Republican primary EditCandidates Edit Rick Santorum U S Representative for PA 18 Joseph P Watkins pastor of the Christ Evangelical Lutheran Church in PhiladelphiaResults Edit Republican primary results Party Candidate Votes Republican Rick Santorum 667 115 81 55 Republican Joseph P Watkins 150 969 18 45 Total votes 100 00 General election EditCandidates Edit Harris Wofford D incumbent U S Senator Rick Santorum R U S Representative for PA 18Campaign Edit Wofford s campaign was hurt from the outset by his strong connection with President Bill Clinton s failed healthcare reform proposals Wofford had made working toward universal healthcare a crucial issue in his prior campaign and was one of the executive s strongest allies on the issue After this failure however the senator ran a relatively passive campaign He instead attempted to focus attention on his challenger an arch conservative who did not attempt to moderate his views after the primary election The polarizing Santorum took strong positions against abortion gay rights and affirmative action and he even clashed with some of the traditional fixtures of the state s moderate Republican establishment Early in the campaign and with little statewide name recognition Santorum made a critical error by attacking Social Security and Wofford appeared to be in relatively safe position However Santorum ran an effective grassroots campaign and specifically targeted many union Democrats who had reservations about the liberal social values advocated by many of their party s leaders 2 In the closing weeks of the campaign Santorum was greatly helped by strong Republican enthusiasm because of anger over Clinton s failed initiatives He solidified his status by running a series of positive ads that attempted to define his character strengths and to contrast with Wofford s negative commercials Santorum eventually received a close victory by performing well and nearly winning his home in the suburban Pittsburgh region and through particularly low turnout in Democratic strongholds such as Philadelphia Scranton and Pittsburgh 2 Debates Edit Complete video of debate October 14 1994 Complete video of debate October 30 1994Results Edit General election results 1 Party Candidate Votes Republican Rick Santorum 1 735 691 49 40 4 41Democratic Harris Wofford incumbent 1 648 481 46 92 8 09Patriot Party Diane G Blough 69 825 1 99 N ALibertarian Donald Ernsberger 59 115 1 68 N AWrite in 249 0 01 N AMajority 87 210 2 48 7 53 Totals 3 513 361 100 00 Republican gain from DemocraticSee also Edit1994 United States Senate electionsReferences Edit a b Statistics of the Congressional Election of November 8 1994 PDF Office of the Clerk of the U S House Retrieved July 9 2014 a b Kennedy John J 2006 Pennsylvania Elections Statewide Contests from 1950 2004 University Press of America ISBN 9780761832799 Retrieved 18 March 2021 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title 1994 United States Senate election in Pennsylvania amp oldid 1130125782, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
