1996 United States Senate election in Illinois
The 1996 United States Senate election in Illinois took place on November 5, 1996. Incumbent Democratic U.S. Senator Paul Simon chose to retire rather than seek a third term in office. In the Democratic primary, U.S. Representative Dick Durbin emerged victorious, while state representative Al Salvi won the Republican primary. Though the election was initially anticipated to be close, Durbin ended up defeating Salvi by a comfortable double-digit margin of victory, allowing him to win what would be the first of several terms in the Senate.
| |||||||||||||||||
| Turnout | 63.79% | ||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| |||||||||||||||||
County results Durbin: 40–50% 50–60% 60–70% Salvi: 40–50% 50–60% 60–70% | |||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||
Election information
The primaries and general elections coincided with those for other federal offices (president and House), as well as those for state offices.
Turnout
For the primaries, turnout was 25.85%, with 1,583,406 votes cast.[1] For the general election, turnout was 63.79%, with 4,250,722 votes cast.[2]
Democratic primary
Candidates
- Jalil Ahmad, real estate agent
- Dick Durbin, U.S. Representative
- Ronald F. Gibbs, advisor to former Chicago Mayor Harold Washington
- Paul H. D. Park
- Pat Quinn, Illinois State Treasurer
Results
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Dick Durbin | 512,520 | 64.87% | |
| Democratic | Pat Quinn | 233,138 | 29.51% | |
| Democratic | Ronald F. Gibbs | 17,681 | 2.24% | |
| Democratic | Jalil Ahmad | 17,211 | 2.18% | |
| Democratic | Paul H. D. Park | 9,505 | 1.20% | |
| Total votes | 790,055 | 100 | ||
Republican primary
Candidates
- Al Salvi, State Representative
- Martin Paul Gallagher
- Wayne S. Kurzeja
- Bob Kustra, Lieutenant Governor of Illinois
- Robert Marshall, perennial candidate
Results
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Al Salvi | 377,141 | 47.64% | |
| Republican | Bob Kustra | 342,935 | 43.32% | |
| Republican | Robert Marshall | 43,937 | 5.55% | |
| Republican | Martin Paul Gallagher | 17,276 | 2.18% | |
| Republican | Wayne S. Kurzeja | 10,356 | 1.31% | |
| Total votes | 791,645 | 100 | ||
Libertarian primary
Candidates
- David F. Hoscheidt
- Robin J. Miller
Results
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Libertarian | Robin J. Miller | 1,258 | 73.74 | |
| Libertarian | David F. Hoscheidt | 448 | 26.26 | |
| Total votes | 1,706 | 100 | ||
General election
Results
Durbin won the election easily.
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Dick Durbin | 2,384,028 | 56.09% | -8.98% | |
| Republican | Al Salvi | 1,728,824 | 40.67% | +5.74% | |
| Reform | Steven H. Perry | 61,023 | 1.44% | ||
| Libertarian | Robin J. Miller | 41,218 | 0.97% | ||
| Constitution | Chad N. Koppie | 17,563 | 0.40% | ||
| Natural Law | James E. Davis | 13,838 | 0.33% | ||
| Write-ins | 4,228 | 0.10% | |||
| Majority | 655,204 | 15.41% | -14.72% | ||
| Turnout | 4,250,722 | 63.79 | |||
| Democratic hold | Swing | ||||
See also
References
- ^ a b "State of Illinois official vote cast at the primary election held on ..." Illinois State Board of Elections. Retrieved 6 April 2020.
- ^ a b "State of Illinois official vote cast at the general election ." Illinois State Board of Elections. Retrieved 6 April 2020.
- ^ a b "Federal Elections 96: 1996 U.S. Senate Results by State". Fec.gov. Retrieved April 4, 2015.
- ^ "Statistics of the Presidential and Congressional Election of November 5, 1996" (PDF). Clerk.house.gov. Retrieved April 4, 2015.