1992 United States Senate election in Pennsylvania
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Specter: 40–50% 50–60% Yeakel: 40–50% 50–60% 60–70% | |||||||||||||||||
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Elections in Pennsylvania |
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The 1992 United States Senate election in Pennsylvania was held on November 3, 1992. Incumbent Republican U.S. Senator Arlen Specter narrowly won re-election to a third term, garnering just forty-nine percent of the vote in what was described by The Philadelphia Inquirer as a "massive turnout for Bill Clinton."[1][2][3][4]
Specter's campaign against Democrat Lynn Yeakel, which was widely reported by nationwide newspapers as having been harmed by his treatment of University of Oklahoma law professor Anita Hill as she testified against U.S. circuit court judge Clarence Thomas during his Senate confirmation hearings for the U.S. Supreme Court, was aided by a combination of support for him from Philadelphia-area voters and weak turnout in the Pittsburgh area for Yeakel.[5]
Republican primary
Candidates
- Stephen Freind, State Representative (from Delaware County)
- Arlen Specter, incumbent U.S. Senator (from Philadelphia County)
Campaign
Despite his powerful position in the Senate, Specter had numerous problems entering the election. A moderate who generally received only tepid support from his party's conservative wing, he was criticized by the right for opposing Ronald Reagan's nomination of Robert Bork to the Supreme Court. Specter subsequently faced a primary challenge from ultra-conservative State Representative Stephen Freind; although the incumbent won handily, the battle was expensive and featured many damaging attack ads.
Democratic primary
Candidates
- Robert E. Colville, District Attorney of Allegheny County (from Allegheny County)
- Freddy Mann Friedman
- Mark Singel, Lieutenant Governor of Pennsylvania (from Cambria County)
- Philip Valenti
- Porter Hardyof Virginia (from Delaware County)
Results
Yeakel won the five-way primary with 45% of the vote, easily defeating the endorsed candidate, Lieutenant Governor
General election
Candidates
- John Perry (Libertarian)
- Arlen Specter, incumbent U.S. Senator (from Philadelphia County) (Republican)
- Lynn Yeakel, millionaire director of women's studies at Drexel University College of Medicine and daughter of former U.S. Representative Porter Hardy Jr.[6][7] (from Delaware County) (Democratic)
Campaign
Senator Specter was highly targeted by women's groups for his involvement in the
Polls put Yeakel ahead of Specter by double digits, but Specter ran a campaign that was praised by political analysts for being almost flawless.
Despite her mistakes, including a frequent tendency to mispronounce the names of places in which she was campaigning, Yeakel continued to perform solidly.
Results
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Republican | Arlen Specter (incumbent) | 2,358,125 | 49.10% | |
Democratic | Lynn Yeakel | 2,224,966 | 46.33% | |
Libertarian | John Perry | 219,319 | 4.57% | |
Total votes | 4,822,410 | 100.00% | ||
Majority | 133,159 | 2.77% | ||
Republican hold |
On Election Day, Yeakel captured by large numbers the traditional Democratic strongholds of the state,
Also critical to the campaign was Specter's grass-roots involvement in Yeakel's base, the traditionally GOP, but Democratic-trending, suburbs of Philadelphia. Yeakel also significantly underperformed in the northeast and southwest. She barely won
See also
References
- ^ Gorenstein, Nathan. "Specter beats back Yeakel bid." Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: The Philadelphia Inquirer, November 4, 1992, p. 1 (subscription required).
- ^ Leffler, Pete. "Specter holds edge over Yeakel: Incumbent takes 51% of vote." Allentown, Pennsylvania: The Morning Call, November 4, 1992, p. 1 (subscription required).
- ^ Bumsted, Brad. "Specter squeaks by: Democratic coalition falls apart." North Hills, Pennsylvania: North Hills News Record, November 4, 1992, p. 12 (subscription required).
- ^ Kissel, Kelly P. "Specter says he was fortunate to win." Indiana, Pennsylvania: The Indiana Gazette, November 4, 1992, p. 9 (subscription required).
- ^ Gorenstein, "Specter beats back Yeakel bid," The Philadelphia Inquirer, November 4, 1992.
- ^ "Yeakel to oppose Specter, main target in Senate race". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. April 29, 1992. Retrieved August 20, 2010.
- ^ "Yeakel, Lynn". OurCampaigns. Retrieved August 20, 2010.
- ^ Leffler, "Specter holds edge over Yeakel: Incumbent takes 51% of vote," The Morning Call, November 4, 1992.
- ^ Kissel, "Specter says he was fortunate to win," The Indiana Gazette, November 4, 1992.
- ^ Gorenstein, "Specter beats back Yeakel bid," The Philadelphia Inquirer, November 4, 1992, p. 1.
- ^ ISBN 9780761832799.
- ^ Kornacki, Steve (April 30, 2009). "Lynn Yeakel Isn't Angry Anymore". New York Observer. Retrieved August 20, 2010.
- ^ "Inquirer.com: Philadelphia local news, sports, jobs, cars, homes". www.inquirer.com. Retrieved November 16, 2022.
- ^ Clerk of the House of Representatives (1993). "Statistics of the Presidential and Congressional election of November 3, 1992" (PDF). U.S. Government Printing Office.
- ^ "Elections '92." York, Pennsylvania: York Daily Record, November 4, 1991, p. 9 (subscription required).
- ^ "Northumberland County polling places." Bloomsburg, Pennsylvania: Press-Enterprise, November 4, 1992, p. 6 (subscription required).
- ^ "Tuesday's general election results by precinct." Gettysburg, Pennsylvania: The Gettysburg Times, November 4, 1992, p. 8 (subscription required).