Английская Википедия:1998 United States Senate election in Vermont
Шаблон:Short description Шаблон:Use mdy dates Шаблон:Infobox election Шаблон:ElectionsVT The 1998 United States Senate election in Vermont was held November 3, 1998. Incumbent Democratic U.S. Senator Patrick Leahy won reelection to a fifth term.[1]
Notably, the Republican nominee, dairy farmer and actor Fred Tuttle, had run to draw attention to the mock documentary film Man with a Plan, of which he was the star, and to ridicule Republican candidate Jack McMullen as too new to Vermont to represent it in Washington. After winning the nomination, Tuttle endorsed Leahy and all but withdrew from the race. His campaign, which had been conducted primarily from his front porch in Tunbridge, Vermont, spent only $251 during the election season and featured the slogans "Spread Fred!" and "Why Not?". Despite his endorsement of Leahy, Tuttle still received 48,051 votes, or 22% of the total.[2]
Democratic primary
Candidates
- Patrick Leahy, incumbent U.S. Senator
Results
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Grassroots primary
Candidates
- Bob Melamede
Results
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Republican primary
Candidates
- Fred Tuttle, dairy farmer and actor
- Jack McMullen, businessman
Campaign
McMullen had maintained a vacation home in Warren, Vermont beginning in 1983, and he made Vermont his permanent residence beginning in 1997.Шаблон:SfnШаблон:Sfn
In 1998, he declared his candidacy for the Republican nomination for U.S. Senator.Шаблон:Sfn As related by Chris Graff, longtime Vermont bureau chief for the Associated Press, McMullen's candidacy sustained an immediate blow when Graff interviewed retired Senator Robert Stafford about the January 1998 ice storm and other current events.Шаблон:Sfn During the discussion, Stafford persistently got McMullen's name wrong, calling him "Mulholland".Шаблон:Sfn Graff wrote that he tried to politely correct Stafford, but finally realized that Stafford's intent was to convey his opinion that McMullen was too unknown and too new to Vermont to be a viable candidate.Шаблон:Sfn The lede in the resulting story was that Vermont's senior Republican was of the view that McMullen had not lived in the state long enough to represent it in the senate, and Stafford's dismissal of McMullen as "Mulholland or whatever his name is" became a running joke among reporters and political operatives.Шаблон:Sfn
In the Republican primary, McMullen faced Fred Tuttle, a retired dairy farmer who had starred in a mock documentary film called Man with a Plan, a comedy about a retired farmer who decides to run for Vermont's seat in the United States House of Representatives.Шаблон:Sfn Tuttle and filmmaker John O'Brien considered using a Tuttle candidacy to promote the film, and accepted a suggestion from political columnist Peter Freyne to challenge McMullen rather than incumbent Congressman Bernie Sanders.Шаблон:Sfn Tuttle then ran in the Republican U.S. Senate primary, partly to generate awareness of the movie, and partly to mock McMullen as a carpetbagger and flatlander (Vermont slang for an out-of-stater) who had moved to Vermont only because he thought it would be easier to run for the Senate there than in more populous Massachusetts.Шаблон:Sfn McMullen was slow to recognize that the Tuttle/O'Brien strategy was viable; when the McMullen campaign challenged Tuttle's nominating petitions as 23 short of the required 500 signatures, Tuttle turned in an additional 2,300.Шаблон:Sfn
During a debate before the primary, Tuttle underscored McMullen's newness to Vermont.Шаблон:Sfn One question he posed to McMullen was "What's a tedder?"Шаблон:Sfn (A machine for drying hay.)Шаблон:Sfn Another was "What's rowen?" (The second cutting of hay from the same field in one season.)Шаблон:Sfn Tuttle continued with queries like "How many teats a Holstein got?"Шаблон:Sfn (Four; McMullen guessed six.)Шаблон:Sfn Tuttle then provided McMullen a list of local place names and asked him to pronounce them.Шаблон:Sfn McMullen's inexperience with Vermont geography showed, as he mispronounced names including Leicester (Lester is correct), Calais (callous being the correct way), and Charlotte (shar-LOT, not Shar-Lit).Шаблон:Sfn
The campaign made national headlines, and added to Tuttle's semi-celebrity status.Шаблон:Sfn Despite McMullen spending over $500,000 to Tuttle's $200, on primary day, Tuttle beat McMullen 28,355 votes to 23,321 (55 percent to 45).Шаблон:Sfn Tuttle immediately announced his intention to vote for incumbent Democratic Senator Patrick Leahy, after which the two made several joint appearances.Шаблон:Sfn On election day, Leahy defeated Tuttle and several minor candidates to win reelection.Шаблон:Sfn
Results
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General election
Candidates
Major
- Patrick Leahy (D), incumbent U.S. Senator
- Fred Tuttle (R), dairy farmer and actor (dropped out before election)
Minor
- Hugh Douglas (L)
- Jerry Levy (LU)
- Bob Melamede (GR)
- Barry Nelson (I)
Results
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See also
References
Sources
Шаблон:United States elections, 1998
