1992 United Kingdom general election in Scotland
The results of the 1992 election were largely unexpected, and nowhere more-so than in Scotland. Conservative results in Scottish local elections since the 1987 election had been largely poor, and the Conservatives had sunk as low as 15% in a March 1990 opinion poll by the Herald. Polling throughout the campaign had suggested little movement towards the Conservatives, and instead support for Scottish independence appeared to be rising. Local polls in individual constituencies had even suggested that the Secretary of State for Scotland Ian Lang would lose his seat of Galloway and Upper Nithsdale to the SNP and that Under-Secretary of State for Scotland Michael Forsyth would lose Stirling to Labour.


1992 United Kingdom general election in Scotland
Most surprising was the difference between the Scottish results and the wider UK results. The tendency had historically been for larger swings to Labour in Scotland where there was a national swing to Labour. In 1992 the wider swing in the UK was from the Conservatives to Labour, yet Scotland saw a swing from Labour to the Conservatives. This was the last election until 2017 in which the Conservatives were the second largest party in Scotland (in the election held 25 years later, the Scottish Conservatives were the beneficiaries of a much larger swing against the trend elsewhere in the UK).


1992 United Kingdom general election in Wales
The 1992 United Kingdom general election in Wales took place on 9 April 1992 for all 38 seats in Wales. The Labour Party again won a decisive majority of Welsh MPs, gaining three seats for a total of 27 out of 38. The Conservatives lost two Welsh MPs, Plaid Cymru gained one and the Liberal Democrats lost two of their three Welsh MPs. However, due to strong Conservative results in England and Scotland, the Conservative result in Wales was enough to allow the party to form a majority government for a fourth term.


1992 United Kingdom general election in Wales, Results
Below is a table summarising the results of the 1992 general election in Wales.


1992 United Kingdom local elections
Local elections were held in the United Kingdom on 7 May 1992, one month after the general election which returned the governing Conservative Party for a fourth consecutive term in office. The Conservatives won back some ground that they had lost the previous year.


1992 United Kingdom local elections
The Conservative Party gained 303 seats, bringing their number of councillors to 8,288. Their share of the vote was projected to be 46%, their highest for many years.


1992 United Kingdom local elections
The main opposition Labour Party lost 402 seats and were left with 9,102 councillors. Their projected share of the vote was 30%, their lowest since 1982. Neil Kinnock was still party leader at this stage, although he had already declared his intention to resign from the position as soon as a new leader was elected; his successor was John Smith, who won the leadership contest against Bryan Gould on 18 July 1992.


1992 United Kingdom local elections
The Liberal Democrats gained 56 seats and had 3,728 councillors after the elections.


1992 United Kingdom local elections, England, Metropolitan boroughs
All 36 metropolitan borough councils had one third of their seats up for election.


1992 United Kingdom local elections, England, District councils, Whole council
In one district the whole council was up for election as there were new ward boundaries, following a further electoral boundary review by the Local Government Boundary Commission for England.


1992 United Kingdom local elections, England, District councils, Third of council
In 113 districts one third of the council was up for election.


1992 United Kingdom local elections, Scotland, District councils
These were the last elections to the district councils before they were abolished by the Local Government etc. (Scotland) Act 1994.


1992 United Nations Security Council election
The 1992 United Nations Security Council election was held on 27 October 1992 during the Forty-seventh session of the United Nations General Assembly, held at United Nations Headquarters in New York City. The General Assembly elected Brazil, Djibouti (for the first time), New Zealand, Pakistan, and Spain, as the five new non-permanent members of the UN Security Council for two-year mandates commencing on 1 January 1993.


1992 United Nations Security Council election, Rules
The Security Council has 15 seats, filled by five permanent members and ten non-permanent members. Each year, half of the non-permanent members are elected for two-year terms. A sitting member may not immediately run for re-election.


1992 United Nations Security Council election, Rules
In accordance with the rules whereby the ten non-permanent UNSC seats rotate among the various regional blocs into which UN member states traditionally divide themselves for voting and representation purposes, the five available seats are allocated as follows:


1992 United Nations Security Council election, Rules
To be elected, a candidate must receive a two-thirds majority of those present and voting. If the vote is inconclusive after the first round, three rounds of restricted voting shall take place, followed by three rounds of unrestricted voting, and so on, until a result has been obtained. In restricted voting, only official candidates may be voted on, while in unrestricted voting, any member of the given regional group, with the exception of current Council members, may be voted on.


1992 United Nations Security Council election, Pre-election statements
Before the vote itself was held, the Chairmen of the regional groups made their statements endorsing the respective regional candidates. Mr. Ould Mohamed Mahmoud of Mauritania, speaking on behalf of the African Group, transferred the recommendation for the candidacy of Djibouti by both the African Group and the Organization of African Unity. Mr. Aksin of Turkey, speaking on behalf of the Asian Group, transferred the endorsement of the Group for the candidacy of Pakistan. Mr. Piriz Ballon of Uruguay transferred the endorsement of the Latin American and Caribbean Group for the candidacy of Brazil. Mr. Haakonsen of Denmark, speaking for the Western European and Others Group, announced the candidatures of New Zealand, Spain, and Sweden.


1992 United States House of Representatives election in Alaska
The Alaska congressional election of 1992 was held on Tuesday, November 3, 1992. The term of the state's sole Representative to the United States House of Representatives expired on January 3, 1993. The winning candidate would serve a two-year term from January 3, 1993, to January 3, 1995.


1992 United States House of Representatives election in District of Columbia
The 1992 congressional election for the Delegate from the District of Columbia was held on November 3, 1992. The winner of the race was Eleanor Holmes Norton (D), who won her first re-election. All elected members would serve in 103rd United States Congress.


1992 United States House of Representatives election in District of Columbia
The non-voting delegate to the United States House of Representatives from the District of Columbia is elected for two-year terms.


1992 United States House of Representatives election in District of Columbia, Candidates
Eleanor Holmes Norton, a Democrat, sought election for her second term to the United States House of Representatives. Norton was opposed in this election by Republican challenger Susan Emerson who received 10.22%. This resulted in Norton being re-elected with 84.78% of the vote.


1992 United States House of Representatives election in Montana
The 1992 United States House of Representatives election in Montana were held on November 3, 1992 to determine who will represent the state of Montana in the United States House of Representatives. Montana had two seats, but lost a seat after being re-apportioned according to the 1990 United States Census. Thus, incumbents from both seats competed for the at large district in the House. Representatives are elected for two-year terms.


1992 United States House of Representatives election in Puerto Rico
The election for Resident Commissioner to the United States House of Representatives took place on November 3, 1992, the same day as the larger Puerto Rican general election and the United States elections, 1992.


1992 United States House of Representatives election in Vermont
The 1992 United States House of Representatives election in Vermont was held on Tuesday, November 3, 1992 to elect the U.S. Representative from the state's at-large congressional district. The election coincided with the elections of other federal and state offices, including a quadrennial presidential election and an election to the U.S. Senate.


1992 United States House of Representatives election in Wyoming
The 1992 United States House of Representatives election in Wyoming were held on November 3, 1992 to determine who will represent the state of Wyoming in the United States House of Representatives. Wyoming has one, at large district in the House, apportioned according to the 1990 United States Census, due to its low population. Representatives are elected for two-year terms. As of 2021, this is the last time a male candidate was elected to Wyoming's House seat.


1992 United States House of Representatives elections
The 1992 United States House of Representatives elections coincided with the 1992 presidential election, in which Democrat Bill Clinton was elected as President, defeating Republican incumbent President George H. W. Bush.


1992 United States House of Representatives elections
Despite this, however, the Democrats lost a net of nine seats in the House to the Republicans, in part due to redistricting following the 1990 Census. The Democrats nonetheless retained a majority in the House and Senate, though it was one of the few times in American history when an incoming president's party lost seats in the House.


1992 United States House of Representatives elections
This election was the first using districts drawn on the basis of the 1990 Census. The redrawn districts were notable for the increase in majority-minority districts, drawn as mandated by the Voting Rights Act. The 1980 Census resulted in 17 majority-black districts and 10 majority-Hispanic districts, but 32 and 19 such districts, respectively, were drawn after 1990.


1992 United States House of Representatives elections
As of 2021, this is the last congressional election in which Republicans won a house seat in Rhode Island.


1992 United States House of Representatives elections, Retiring incumbents
64 members did not seek re-election: 40 Democrats and 24 Republicans.


1992 United States House of Representatives elections, California
The delegation increased from 45 to 52 seats. To create the seven-seat net gain, eight seats were added, designated as: the 10th, 11th, 25th, 33rd, 41st, 43rd, 49th, and 50th districts, and one seat was lost through the merger of two seats: the former 41st and 44th districts merged into the redesignated 51st district, in an election contest.


1992 United States House of Representatives elections, Louisiana
One seat lost to reapportionment. Four Incumbents were squeezed into two districts and one new district was created.


1992 United States House of Representatives elections in Arizona
The 1992 congressional elections in Arizona were elections for Arizona's delegation to the United States House of Representatives, which occurred along with congressional elections nationwide on November 8, 1992. Arizona has six seats, as apportioned during the 1990 United States Census. Republicans held five seats and Democrats held one seat before the election, but both parties had three seats each after the election because the Democrats gained two seats.


1992 United States House of Representatives elections in California
The United States House of Representatives elections in California, 1992 was an election for California's delegation to the United States House of Representatives, which occurred as part of the general election of the House of Representatives on November 3, 1992. California gained seven seats after the 1990 Census, five of which were won by Republicans and two by Democrats. Of California's already-existing seats, Democrats won three Republican-held seats while Republicans won one Democratic-held seat.


1992 United States House of Representatives elections in Georgia
The 1992 House elections in Georgia occurred on November 3, 1992 to elect the members of the State of Georgia's delegation to the United States House of Representatives. Georgia had eleven seats in the House, apportioned according to the 1990 United States Census.


1992 United States House of Representatives elections in Georgia
These elections were held concurrently with the United States Senate elections of 1992 (including one election in Georgia), the United States House elections in other states, and various state and local elections.


1992 United States House of Representatives elections in Georgia
Prior to the elections, Georgia's House delegation consisted of nine Democrats and one Republican. As a result of the 1990 United States Census, Georgia picked up an additional seat for the 1992 U.S. House elections. Two new districts were made, one based in Gwinnett County and another that stretched from Atlanta to Savannah (the predecessors of the modern seventh and fourth districts respectively). In addition Doug Barnard, Jr. and Ben L. Jones were drawn into the same district.


1992 United States House of Representatives elections in Georgia
The Democratic-controlled Georgia General Assembly under the leadership of fiercely partisan Speaker of the House Tom Murphy specifically targeted Gingrich, heavily altering the district that Gingrich represented. Gerrymandering split Gingrich's territory among three neighboring districts. Much of the southern portion of Gingrich's district, including his home in Carrollton, was drawn into the Columbus-based 3rd District, represented by five-term Democrat Richard Ray. At the same time, the Assembly created a new, heavily Republican 6th District in Fulton and Cobb counties in the wealthy northern suburbs of Atlanta—-an area that Gingrich had never represented.


1992 United States House of Representatives elections in Georgia
However, Democrats attempt at defeating Gingrich ultimately backfired. Gingrich sold his home in Carrollton and moved to Marietta in the new 6th. He subsequently won a heated primary over state Representative Herman Clark and remained the House of Representatives until 1999. The changes made to Ray's district, which became considerably more urban and Republican than his old territory, contributed to his defeat in the fall to state senator Mac Collins. As of 2020, this is the last election in which Democrats won a majority of congressional districts in Georgia.


1992 United States House of Representatives elections in Kansas
The 1992 United States House of Representatives elections in Kansas were held on November 3, 1992 to determine who will represent the state of Kansas in the United States House of Representatives. Kansas has four seats in the House, apportioned according to the 1990 United States Census. Representatives are elected for two-year terms.


1992 United States House of Representatives elections in Maryland
The 1992 congressional elections in Maryland were held on November 3, 1992, to determine who will represent the state of Maryland in the United States House of Representatives. Maryland has eight seats in the House, apportioned according to the 1990 United States Census. Representatives are elected for two-year terms; those elected served in the 103rd Congress from January 3, 1993 until January 3, 1995.


1992 United States House of Representatives elections in Michigan
The 1992 congressional elections in Michigan was held on November 3, 1992 to determine who would represent the state of Michigan in the United States House of Representatives. Michigan had eighteen seats in the House, but lost two after being re-apportioned according to the 1990 United States Census, resulting in the state having sixteen seats. Representatives are elected for two-year terms.


1992 United States House of Representatives elections in New Hampshire
The 1992 congressional elections in New Hampshire were held on November 3, 1992. They determined who would represent the state of New Hampshire in the United States House of Representatives. Representatives are elected for two-year terms; those elected served in the 103rd Congress from January 1993 until January 1995. New Hampshire has two seats in the House, apportioned according to the 1990 United States Census.


1992 United States House of Representatives elections in South Carolina
The 1992 United States House of Representatives elections in South Carolina were held on November 6, 1992 to select six Representatives for two-year terms from the state of South Carolina. The primary elections for the Democrats and the Republicans were held on June 9. Four incumbents were re-elected, but incumbent Democrat Liz J. Patterson of the 4th congressional district was defeated for re-election by Republican Bob Inglis. The open seat in the 6th congressional district remained with the Democrats and the composition of the state delegation after the elections was even at three Republicans and three Democrats.


1992 United States House of Representatives elections in South Carolina, 1st congressional district
Incumbent Republican Congressman Arthur Ravenel, Jr. of the 1st congressional district, in office since 1987, defeated Democratic challenger Bill Oberst, Jr.


1992 United States House of Representatives elections in South Carolina, 2nd congressional district
Incumbent Republican Congressman Floyd Spence of the 2nd congressional district, in office since 1971, defeated Libertarian challenger Gebhard Sommer.


1992 United States House of Representatives elections in South Carolina, 3rd congressional district
Incumbent Democratic Congressman Butler Derrick of the 3rd congressional district, in office since 1975, defeated Republican challenger Jim Bland.


1992 United States House of Representatives elections in South Carolina, 4th congressional district
Incumbent Democratic Congresswoman Liz J. Patterson of the 4th congressional district, in office since 1987, was defeated for re-election by Republican challenger Bob Inglis.


1992 United States House of Representatives elections in South Carolina, 5th congressional district
Incumbent Democratic Congressman John M. Spratt, Jr. of the 5th congressional district, in office since 1983, defeated Republican challenger Bill Horne.


1992 United States House of Representatives elections in South Carolina, 6th congressional district
South Carolina's congressional districts were redrawn following the 1990 census. The Republicans joined forces with the black Democrats in the state legislature to form a black-majority district; this gave the substantial minority the chance to elect candidates they favored. It also made the other districts predominately majority white by a greater margin, and these conservative voters had been favoring Republicans for some time.


1992 United States House of Representatives elections in South Carolina, 6th congressional district
The boundaries of the 6th congressional district were shifted from its previous northeast position in the state to the central part of the state and defined to include many black majority counties, as well as black precincts of Charleston and Columbia. Incumbent Democratic Congressman Robin Tallon opted to retire rather than run in a district that he considered unfavorable to a white candidate. Jim Clyburn won the Democratic primary and defeated Republican John Chase in the general election to succeed Tallon in office.


1992 United States House of Representatives elections in Texas
The 1992 United States House of Representatives elections in Texas occurred on November 8, 1992, to elect the members of the state of Texas's delegation to the United States House of Representatives. Texas had thirty seats in the House, apportioned according to the 1990 United States Census.


1992 United States House of Representatives elections in Texas
These elections occurred simultaneously with the United States Senate elections of 1992, the United States House elections in other states, the presidential election, and various state and local elections. As of 2018, this is the last time the Democratic Party won the popular vote in Texas's U.S. House races, though Democrats would continue to hold a majority of House seats until 2004.


1992 United States House of Representatives elections in Virginia
The 1992 United States House of Representatives elections in Virginia were held on November 3, 1992 to determine who will represent the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States House of Representatives. Virginia has eleven seats in the House, apportioned according to the 1990 United States Census. Representatives are elected for two-year terms.


1992 United States House of Representatives elections in West Virginia
The 1992 United States House of Representatives elections in West Virginia were held on November 3, 1992 to determine who will represent the state of West Virginia in the United States House of Representatives. West Virginia has three seats in the House, apportioned according to the 1990 United States Census. Representatives are elected for two-year terms.


1992 United States House of Representatives elections in West Virginia, District 1
Incumbent Democrat Alan Mollohan was re-elected unopposed. This district covers the northern part of the state.


1992 United States House of Representatives elections in West Virginia, District 2
Incumbent Democrat Bob Wise defeated Republican Samuel A. Cravotta. This district covers the central part of the state.


1992 United States House of Representatives elections in West Virginia, District 3
Incumbent Democrat Nick Rahall defeated Republican Ben Waldman. This district covers the southern part of the state.


1992 United States Interregional Soccer League
The 1992 United States Interregional Soccer League was an American outdoor soccer season run by the United States Interregional Soccer League.


1992 United States Olympic Trials (swimming)
The 1992 United States Olympic Trials for swimming events was held from March 1–7 in Indianapolis, Indiana. It was the qualifying meet for American swimmers who hoped to compete at the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona.


1992 United States Olympic Trials (swimming), Results
Key:  Highlighted swimmers achieved the qualification conditions to be included in the Olympic team in that respective event.


1992 United States Olympic Trials (track and field)
The 1992 United States Olympic Trials for track and field were held at Tad Gormley Stadium in New Orleans, Louisiana. Organised by The Athletics Congress (TAC), the ten-day competition lasted from June 19 until June 28 and also served as the national championships in track and field for the United States. This was the first time the Olympic Trials served in the dual capacity since 1932. The Men's Marathon Trials were held April 11, in Columbus, Ohio.


1992 United States Olympic Trials (track and field)
The results of the event determined qualification for the United States at the 1992 Summer Olympics held in Barcelona, Spain.


1992 United States Olympic Trials (track and field)
These trials also saw the premature conclusion of the Dan & Dave Reebok advertising campaign as Dan O'Brien failed to make the Olympic team in the Decathlon after missing his attempts in the Pole Vault.


1992 United States Senate election in Alabama
The 1992 United States Senate election in Alabama took place on November 3, 1992, alongside other elections to the United States Senate in other states as well as elections to the United States House of Representatives and various state and local elections. Incumbent Democratic U.S. Senator Richard Shelby won re-election to a second term, winning every county except Shelby. As of 2021, it is the last time the Democratic Party has won the Class 3 Senate seat in Alabama. Despite Bill Clinton's failure to win the state on the presidential level, Shelby easily won re-election to a second term.


1992 United States Senate election in Alaska
The 1992 United States Senate election in Alaska was held on November 3, 1992. Incumbent Republican United States Senator Frank Murkowski sought re-election to a third term in the United States Senate. Tony Smith, the Democratic nominee and a former Commissioner of Economic Development, won his party's nomination in a crowded primary and faced off against Murkowski in the general election. Though Murkowski was held to a lower vote percentage than he received six years prior, he was ultimately re-elected.


1992 United States Senate election in Arizona
The 1992 United States Senate election in Arizona was held on November 3, 1992. Incumbent Republican U.S. Senator John McCain won re-election to a second term.


1992 United States Senate election in Arkansas
The 1992 United States Senate election in Arkansas was held on November 3, 1992. Incumbent Democratic Senator Dale Bumpers won re-election to a fourth term. His Republican opponent was future Arkansas lieutenant governor, governor, and two-time presidential candidate Mike Huckabee, a church pastor from Texarkana.


1992 United States Senate election in Arkansas
The 1992 election coincided with the 1992 presidential election, in which Arkansas governor Bill Clinton, who was elected as President of the United States, won his home state. In contrast with Bumpers' landslide where he won over 60% of the vote, Clinton won only 53% of the vote. Bumpers would serve another term in the U.S. Senate before deciding to retire in 1998. As of 2021, this would be the last time that Arkansas would vote for the Democratic candidates for both the presidential and Senate elections.


1992 United States Senate election in California
The 1992 United States Senate election in California took place on November 3, 1992, at the same time as the special election to the United States Senate in California. Incumbent Democrat Alan Cranston decided to retire. Democrat Barbara Boxer won the open seat. This election was noted as both of California's Senators were elected for the first time. This is not a unique occurrence; it would happen again in Tennessee in 1994, Kansas in 1996, and Georgia in 2020-21. Fellow Democrat Dianne Feinstein, California's senior senator, won the special election and was inaugurated in November 1992.


1992 United States Senate election in California, Democratic primary, Results
In the primary election in June, Boxer defeated McCarthy and Levine with 43.6% of the vote.


1992 United States Senate election in California, General election, Campaign
The general election between Boxer and Herschensohn was very close. At the eleventh hour, controversy emerged that the Republican nominee attended a strip club, which some Republican operatives later blamed for Herschensohn's loss.


1992 United States Senate election in California, General election, Campaign
Four days before Election Day polls showed Herschensohn had narrowed a double digit deficit, trailing by 3 points. Political operative Bob Mulholland disrupted a campaign appearance with a large poster advertising a strip club shouting "Should the voters of California elect someone who frequently travels the strip joints of Hollywood?" Herschensohn admitted he had visited a strip club once, with his girlfriend and another couple. With press coverage of the story, Herschensohn spent the waning days of the campaign denying related allegations. When the votes were cast and counted, Boxer won the election by five points. Although Republicans have blamed the defeat on the underhanded tactics of the Boxer campaign, evidence of the connection between Mulholland's outburst and the campaign never surfaced.


1992 United States Senate election in California, General election, Results
The election was very close. Boxer was declared the winner by the Associated Press at 1:22 A.M. Pacific Coast Time.


1992 United States Senate election in Colorado
The 1992 United States Senate election in Colorado was held on November 3, 1992. Incumbent Democratic U.S. Senator Tim Wirth decided to retire instead of seeking a second term. Democratic nominee Ben Nighthorse Campbell, a U.S. Representative, won the open seat. Campbell switched to the Republican Party in 1994.


1992 United States Senate election in Connecticut
The 1992 United States Senate election in Connecticut took place on November 3, 1992, alongside other elections to the United States Senate in 34 other states, as well as with a presidential election and elections to the United States House of Representatives in all 50 states. Incumbent Democratic U.S. Senator Christopher Dodd won re-election for a third term.


1992 United States Senate election in Connecticut, Campaign
Johnson, a millionaire businessman who had never run for public office before, spent about $900,000 during the primary campaign. His television and radio commercials said that he would bring "a dose of success Washington needs." Dodd had $2 million cash on hand following the primaries.


1992 United States Senate election in Florida
The 1992 United States Senate election in Florida took place on November 3, 1992 alongside other elections to the United States Senate in other states as well as elections to the United States House of Representatives and various state and local elections. Incumbent Democratic U.S. Senator Bob Graham won re-election to a second term.


1992 United States Senate election in Florida, General election, Results
Graham defeated Grant in a landslide, as Grant won just one county in the state (Okaloosa County, Florida). There were no third party or independent candidates.


1992 United States Senate election in Georgia
The 1992 United States Senate election in Georgia was held on November 3, 1992. Incumbent Democratic U.S. Senator Wyche Fowler did not receive a simple majority in the general election, which demanded a runoff. Coverdell edged out Fowler in the runoff with a narrow margin, concurrent with Democrat Bill Clinton's win in the state in the presidential election. It was the first Senate runoff election to be held in Georgia since runoffs were first mandated in 1964.


1992 United States Senate election in Georgia, Republican primary
The general primary was held July 21, 1992. A run-off between the top two Republican contenders was held on August 11, in which Paul Coverdell defeated Bob Barr.


1992 United States Senate election in Georgia, Republican primary, Results
Results for the first round showed that since Paul Coverdell did not win a majority of the vote, a runoff was held between him and Barr. Coverdell subsequently won the runoff.


1992 United States Senate election in Georgia, General election, Results, Initial
As no candidate reached a majority on November 3, a runoff election was held on November 24, which Coverdell won.


1992 United States Senate election in Georgia, Aftermath
The Georgia Legislature, then controlled by Democrats, changed the state's laws requiring a run-off election only if the winning candidate received less than 45% of the vote. In the 1996 Senate election, the winner, Democrat Max Cleland won with only 48.9% (1.4% ahead of Republican Guy Millner) thus avoiding a run-off. In 2005 after Republicans took control of the legislature, the run-off requirement was changed back to 50%.


1992 United States Senate election in Hawaii
The 1992 United States Senate election in Hawaii took place on November 3, 1992, alongside other elections to the United States Senate in other states as well as elections to the United States House of Representatives and various state and local elections. Incumbent Democratic U.S. Senator Daniel Inouye won re-election to a sixth term.


1992 United States Senate election in Idaho
The 1992 United States Senate election in Idaho took place on November 3, 1992, alongside other elections to the United States Senate in other states as well as elections to the United States House of Representatives and various state and local elections. Incumbent Republican U.S. Senator Steve Symms decided to retire instead of seeking a third term. Republican nominee Dirk Kempthorne won the open seat.


1992 United States Senate election in Illinois
The 1992 United States Senate election in Illinois was held on November 3, 1992. Incumbent Democratic U.S. Senator Alan J. Dixon decided to run for re-election a third term, but was defeated in the primary against Carol Moseley Braun, who ended up winning the general election. As of 2020, this is the last time a political party won class III Illinois Senate seat in two consecutive elections.


1992 United States Senate election in Illinois
Braun (whose victory coincided with Bill Clinton's win in the presidential election and Illinois) made history in this election by becoming the first African-American woman ever elected to the U.S Senate, and also the first African-American elected to the U.S Senate as a Democrat. Braun was also the first African-American and the first woman elected to the U.S. Senate from the state of Illinois.


1992 United States Senate election in Illinois, Election information
The primaries and general elections coincided with those for other federal elections (president and House), as well as those for state offices.


1992 United States Senate election in Illinois, Election information, Turnout
For the primaries, turnout was 35.20%, with 2,064,347 votes cast. For the general election, turnout was 74.84%, with 4,939,557 votes cast.


1992 United States Senate election in Illinois, Democratic Primary, Analysis
This defeat shocked observers; at the time no Senator had been defeated in a primary in over a decade and Dixon had a long record of electoral success. He was a moderate Democrat, who recently voted to confirm Clarence Thomas to the Supreme Court. Braun, a black woman and known reformist liberal, got a large share of black, liberal, and women voters ("The Year of the Woman").


1992 United States Senate election in Illinois, Democratic Primary, Analysis
In addition, she carried Cook County, Illinois, by far the most populated county in the state. Another factor was the third candidate in the race, multi-millionaire attorney Al Hofeld. Hofeld drew away some of the moderate and conservative Democrats who normally supported Dixon. He also spent a lot of money running advertisements attacking Dixon, weakening his support.


1992 United States Senate election in Illinois, General election, Results
Moseley Braun won the 1992 Illinois Senate Race by a fairly comfortable margin. Moseley Braun did well as expected in Cook County home of Chicago. Williamson did well in the Chicago collar counties, and most northern parts of the state. Moseley Braun had a surprisingly strong showing in southern Illinois, which Republicans had come to dominate in the last several decades. Braun also did well in Rock Island County.


1992 United States Senate election in Indiana
The 1992 United States Senate election in Indiana was held on November 3, 1992. Incumbent Republican U.S. Senator Dan Coats won re-election to his first full term.


1992 United States Senate election in Indiana, Background
When incumbent Republican U.S. Senator Dan Quayle resigned from the Senate after being elected Vice President of the United States in 1988, Coats was appointed to Quayle’s former seat. He then won re-election to serve the remainder of the term in 1990.


1992 United States Senate election in Indiana, Results, Overall
Coats won the election easily. Hogsett did perform well in some counties in southern Indiana, and also managed to win a few counties in western Indiana. Hogsett’s strongest performance by far was in Lake County where he received over 60% of the vote.


1992 United States Senate election in Indiana, Results, By county
Coats won 79 of Indiana's counties compared to 13 for Hogsett.


1992 United States Senate election in Iowa
The 1992 United States Senate election in Iowa was held November 3, 1992. Incumbent Republican United States Senator Chuck Grassley ran for re-election to a third term in the United States Senate, which he won easily against his Democratic opponent, State Senator Jean Hall Lloyd-Jones.


1992 United States Senate election in Kansas
The 1992 United States Senate election in Kansas took place on November 3, 1992. Incumbent Republican senator Bob Dole won re-election to a fifth term, defeating Democratic nominee Gloria O'Dell. Nearly two decades after his failed vice-presidential bid in 1976, this would be Dole's last election to the Senate. He would resign in 1996 while running for President of the United States. Dole also became the Republican Leader of the United States Senate seven years prior.


1992 United States Senate election in Kansas, Major candidates, Democratic
In the Democratic primary, O'Dell defeated Fred Phelps, the highly controversial pastor of the Westboro Baptist Church.


1992 United States Senate election in Kentucky
The 1992 United States Senate election in Kentucky took place on November 3, 1992. It was concurrent with elections to the United States House of Representatives. Incumbent Democratic U.S. Senator Wendell Ford won reelection to a fourth and final term. As of 2021, this is the last time the Democrats won a U.S. Senate election in Kentucky.


1992 United States Senate election in Kentucky, Republican primary, Campaign
Denny Ormerod, a machinist from Louisville dropped out before the primary election. Though Williams and Thompson represented opposing factions in the state Republican Party – Williams managed Larry Hopkins' 1991 primary campaign while Thompson worked full-time for Hopkins' primary opponent Larry Forgy – the two virtually ignored each other in the primary campaign, choosing instead to focus their rhetoric against Ford. Thompson did question Williams' conservative credentials on grounds that he voted in favor of the tax increase associated with the Kentucky Education Reform Act.


1992 United States Senate election in Kentucky, Republican primary, Campaign
Ormerod's campaign largely focused on socially conservative issues, but it was Williams who secured the endorsement of Kentucky Right to Life, who cited his lawsuit to free three anti-abortion bills from committee in the 1992 legislative session. As a result of the largely uninspiring primary campaigns, there was only an 18% voter turnout in the Republican primary. Williams won the nomination.


1992 United States Senate election in Kentucky, General election, Campaign
Ford, the Senate Majority Whip and a former governor, raised $2.4 million for his campaign, about eight times the amount Williams raised. Given his limited finances, Williams relied on news conferences and interviews on small town radio stations to get his message out. Williams repeatedly lamented that Ford would not agree to a formal debate; Ford said that could not be arranged because Congress was still in session and he needed to be in Washington.


1992 United States Senate election in Kentucky, General election, Campaign
During the campaign, Williams attempted to paint Ford as too liberal for Kentucky voters, citing his votes against the Gulf War and Clarence Thomas' confirmation to the U.S. Supreme Court. Both candidates declared their support for a Balanced Budget Amendment, but Williams said that Ford's support of pork barrel projects for the state and a procedural vote that kept the amendment from a vote in 1991 were evidence that Ford's support was not genuine.


1992 United States Senate election in Kentucky, General election, Results
Ford had no trouble winning on election night. Ford won easily, despite the fact that fellow Democrat Bill Clinton was not declared the winner of the presidential race in Kentucky until around 10:00 E.S.T. Ford pulled big margins out of the majority of Kentucky's 124 counties. This would be Ford's last term in the senate. He served his final term from January 3, 1993, to January 3, 1999. Ford died sixteen years after his retirement at the age of 90 in January 2015.


1992 United States Senate election in Louisiana
The 1992 United States Senate election in Louisiana took place on November 3, 1992. Incumbent Democratic senator John Breaux won a majority in Louisiana's jungle primary on October 3, 1992, winning reelection to another term.


1992 United States Senate election in Maryland
The 1992 United States Senate election in Maryland was held on November 3, 1992. Incumbent Democratic U.S. Senator Barbara Mikulski won re-election to a second term.


1992 United States Senate election in Missouri
The 1992 United States Senate election in Missouri was held on November 3, 1992. Incumbent Republican U.S. Senator Kit Bond won re-election to a second term.


1992 United States Senate election in Nevada
The 1992 United States Senate election in Nevada was held on November 3, 1992. Although nearly 10% of the electorate voted for neither of the two major U.S. political parties, incumbent Democratic U.S. Senator Harry Reid won re-election to a second term.


1992 United States Senate election in New Hampshire
The 1992 United States Senate election in New Hampshire was held November 3, 1992. Incumbent Republican U.S. Senator Warren Rudman decided to retire. Republican Judd Gregg won the open seat. It was his most competitive election, as he has been able to easily defeat his opponents in other elections.


1992 United States Senate election in New York
The 1992 United States Senate election in New York took place on November 3, 1992 alongside other elections to the United States Senate in other states as well as elections to the United States House of Representatives and various state and local elections. Incumbent Republican U.S. Senator Al D'Amato narrowly won re-election to a third term. As of 2021, this is the last time the Republicans won a U.S. Senate election in New York.


1992 United States Senate election in New York, Democratic primary, Campaign
The Democratic primary campaign featured State Attorney General Robert Abrams, former U.S. Congresswoman and 1984 vice presidential candidate Geraldine Ferraro, Reverend Al Sharpton, and New York City Comptroller and former Congresswoman Elizabeth Holtzman. Congressman Robert J. Mrazek was also an early candidate, but withdrew from the race after being named in the House banking scandal. Abrams was considered the initial front-runner.


1992 United States Senate election in New York, Democratic primary, Campaign
Ferraro emphasized her career as a teacher, prosecutor, congresswoman, and mother, and positioned herself as being tough on crime. She soon took the lead in the polls, additionally capitalizing on her name recognition from 1984. However, she drew attacks from the media and her opponents over her husband John Zaccaro's finances and business relationships. Initially, Ferraro used the attacks in attempt to galvanize the feminist vote, but her lead began to dwindle under the criticism, and she released additional tax returns in an attempt to defray the attacks. Holtzman ran a negative ad accusing Ferraro and Zaccaro of taking more than $300,000 in rent in the 1980s from a pornographer with purported ties to organized crime.


1992 United States Senate election in New York, Democratic primary, Results
In the primary, Abrams won by less than one percentage point, winning 37 percent of the vote to Ferraro's 36 percent. Ferraro did not concede the election for two weeks.


1992 United States Senate election in New York, General election, Campaign
After Abrams emerged as the nominee, the Democrats remained divided. In particular, Abrams spent much of the remainder of the campaign trying to get Ferraro's endorsement. Ferraro, enraged and bitter after the nature of the primary, ignored Abrams and accepted Bill Clinton's request to campaign for his presidential bid instead. She was eventually persuaded by state party leaders into giving an unenthusiastic endorsement with just three days to go before the general election, in exchange for an apology by Abrams for the tone of the primary.


1992 United States Senate election in New York, General election, Campaign
Abrams was also accused of engaging in ethnically charged attacks against the Italian ancestry of both Ferraro and D'Amato. Ahead of the primary, Ferraro sought to defend herself against accusations that she received financial support from organized crime in her 1978 congressional campaign, claiming that "If I were not Italian American, this whole thing would never have been brought up." In October, Abrams was again accused of anti-Italian political attacks after calling D'Amato a "fascist" at a campaign event and alleging that he had engaged in the "big lie techniques" of Nazi propaganda officers.


1992 United States Senate election in New York, General election, Campaign
At a Columbus Day parade the following day, D'Amato accused Abrams of engaging in ethnic insults on his Italian ancestry, and in a subsequent campaign ad featured images of Italian fascist leader Benito Mussolini to depict the word "fascist" as an anti-Italian slur. Abrams narrowly lost the general election, partially as a result of these controversies.


1992 United States Senate election in North Carolina
The 1992 United States Senate election in North Carolina was held on November 3, 1992 as part of the nationwide elections to the Senate. Incumbent Democrat Terry Sanford lost re-election for a second term to Republican Lauch Faircloth.


1992 United States Senate election in North Carolina, General election, Campaign
In 1990, after 40 years as a Democrat, Faircloth switched his party registration and began preparations to seek the Republican Senate nomination in 1992. Enjoying the support of Senator Jesse Helms's political organization, Faircloth defeated Charlotte mayor Sue Myrick and former congressman Walter E. Johnston, III in the primary. His opponent in the general election was his former ally, Terry Sanford.


1992 United States Senate election in North Carolina, General election, Campaign
Although Sanford had helped Faircloth raise money for his failed gubernatorial bid in 1984, he angered Faircloth two years later when he allegedly dismissed Faircloth's chances in a statewide contest if the two ran against each other for the Democratic nomination for the Senate. Faircloth withdrew from the 1986 race after Sanford "blindsided" him by announcing his candidacy.


1992 United States Senate election in North Carolina, General election, Campaign
Faircloth attacked Sanford as a tax-and-spend liberal, and despite a poor performance in a September televised debate, Faircloth won the seat by a 100,000-vote margin. Sanford may have been weakened by his unpopular vote against authorizing military force in the Persian Gulf War, and he suffered health problems in the summer of 1992.


1992 United States Senate election in North Dakota
The 1992 United States Senate election in North Dakota was held on November 3, 1992, along with other elections to the United States Senate in other states as well as elections to the United States House of Representatives and various state and local elections. Incumbent Democratic-NPL U.S. Senator Kent Conrad retired, having given a pledge that he would not run for re-election if the federal budget deficit was higher than when he was first elected; however, when the other Senate seat became vacant, he ran in the special election and won. Democratic-NPL U.S. Congressman Byron Dorgan won the open seat.


1992 United States Senate election in Ohio
The 1992 United States Senate election in Ohio was held on November 3, 1992. Incumbent Democratic U.S. Senator John Glenn defeated Republican Lieutenant Governor Mike DeWine to win re-election to a fourth term, coinciding with the presidential election.


1992 United States Senate election in Ohio
Glenn's voting percentage of 51% represented the worst performance of his four runs for the Senate, partially due to the presence of third-party candidate Martha Grevatt of the far-left Workers World Party. DeWine would later be elected to Ohio's other Senate seat in 1994 and served with Glenn until the latter's retirement in 1999.


1992 United States Senate election in Ohio
As of 2021, this is the last time the Democrats won the Class 3 Senate seat from Ohio.


1992 United States Senate election in Ohio, Campaign
DeWine's campaign focused on the need for change and to introduce term limits for senators. This would be Glenn's fourth term as senator. DeWine was also critical of Glenn's past campaign debts. His campaign used a bunny dressed as an astronaut beating a drum, with an announcer saying, "He just keeps owing and owing and owing", a play on the Energizer Bunny.


1992 United States Senate election in Ohio, Campaign
Glenn's campaign noted DeWine's pro-life leanings, and that he flip-flopped on his opposition of term limits. Glenn also said that DeWine was a career politician and was just looking for another job in politics. The extremely negative campaign caused a substantial number of voters to become disillusioned with both major-party candidates, leading to a large number of protest votes going to Martha Grevatt, nominee of the Marxist-Leninist Workers World Party, who was listed on the ballot as an independent.


1992 United States Senate election in Oklahoma
The 1992 United States Senate election in Oklahoma was held November 3, 1992. Incumbent Republican U.S. Senator Don Nickles won re-election to his third term.


1992 United States Senate election in Oregon
The 1992 United States Senate election in Oregon was held on November 3, 1992. Incumbent Republican U.S. Senator Bob Packwood won re-election to his fifth term. As of 2021, this is the last time the Republicans won the Class 3 U.S. Senate seat in Oregon.


1992 United States Senate election in Oregon, Background
As the election season got underway, analysts from both major parties predicted that Packwood would have one of the toughest seats to defend in what was anticipated to be a volatile election year. Packwood was regarded as one of the nation's "most powerful elected officials" with "extraordinary political instincts." But the state's largest newspaper, The Oregonian, had described AuCoin (Packwood's presumed main challenger) as having "persistence, imagination and clout [that] have made him the most powerful congressman in Oregon and one of the most influential members from the Northwest."


1992 United States Senate election in Oregon, Democratic primary, Campaign
For AuCoin, however, first came the Democratic primary. He faced Portland attorney Joe Wetzel and Bend businessman Harry Lonsdale in what became a "brutal, bitter" contest. Lonsdale, who had run a close race against incumbent Mark Hatfield for Oregon's other Senate seat in 1990, emerged as AuCoin's principal rival; Wetzel, who criticized Packwood and AuCoin as long-term, ineffective members of Congress, trailed throughout the race, and was not invited to an April debate sponsored by the City Club of Portland. Lonsdale took on "the Les AuCoin-Mark Hatfield-Bob Packwood coalition" as his primary cause, stating "I consider Les AuCoin a good man who has been corrupted by PAC money over the years".


1992 United States Senate election in Oregon, Democratic primary, Campaign
In a race the Seattle Times called "as negative as many voters can remember," Lonsdale attacked AuCoin as "corrupt" and tied to the timber industry. Lonsdale's environmental credentials also came under scrutiny, and AuCoin noted Lonsdale's reversal of support for nuclear power and belated opposition to the re-opening of Trojan Nuclear Power Plant. AuCoin turned accusations of undue influence back on Lonsdale, pointing out that his company (Bend Research) had received millions in federal defense contracts.


1992 United States Senate election in Oregon, Democratic primary, Campaign
Even during the primary, Packwood and AuCoin traded barbs on various issues. Packwood joined Lonsdale in criticizing AuCoin for his involvement in what was reported as a rash of check-bouncing among members of Congress; AuCoin characterized the issue as a series of mistakes, rather than gross abuses. In what was believed to be an unprecedented move, Packwood attempted to influence the Democratic primary's outcome by running television ads against AuCoin.


1992 United States Senate election in Oregon, Democratic primary, Campaign
Ultimately, the results of the Democratic primary were so close that an automatic recount was triggered. AuCoin held a news conference on May 23 in the South Park Blocks stating he would wait for the recount, but the margin was currently 248 votes in his favor. On June 18, over a month after the primary election, AuCoin was certified as having won by 330 votes. Upon conceding the race, Lonsdale pondered mounting a write-in campaign, reiterating that Oregon needed an "outsider" in the Senate.


1992 United States Senate election in Oregon, Republican primary, Campaign
Packwood had gone through a divorce in 1991, and his ex-wife threatened to run against him amid mounting concerns about his "eye for the ladies." The socially conservative Oregon Citizens Alliance (OCA) was at the apex of its statewide prominence with 1992's anti-gay Measure 9 and its newly formed American Heritage Party (AHP). The group endorsed Republican challenger Joe Lutz, who had run against Packwood in the past on a family values platform; but Lutz soon withdrew, announcing a divorce of his own.


1992 United States Senate election in Oregon, Republican primary, Campaign
As early as January, the OCA considered backing former gubernatorial candidate Al Mobley as an independent or as a member of the AHP. Mobley ultimately decided in mid-August not to run, stating that he could not bear the idea that he might be responsible for causing AuCoin to be elected. Packwood's most significant challenge thus came from little-known conservative Medford attorney John DeZell, who campaigned on the family values issue. Packwood cruised to victory over DeZell and several other candidates.


1992 United States Senate election in Oregon, General election, Campaign
By the end of June, when the recount was complete, AuCoin was nearly out of campaign funds; Packwood entered the general election race with $3.2 million and was ranked sixth nationwide among Senators raising funds outside their home state during the 1990–1992 election season.


1992 United States Senate election in Oregon, General election, Campaign
AuCoin opposed weakening the Endangered Species Act (ESA) to erase the Northern Spotted Owl's impact on the timber industry, but Packwood ("one of the timber industry's chief allies," according to Oregon State University political scientist William Lunch) assailed "environmental extremists" and introduced legislation to convene a presidential cabinet committee to exempt the endangered owl from the ESA.


1992 United States Senate election in Oregon, General election, Campaign
In September, Packwood pulled ads that had falsely criticized AuCoin for missing votes while speaking to special interest groups. By October, Packwood had raised $8 million, spending $5.4 million more than AuCoin, and leading all Senate incumbents. Yet that fall, the two candidates were in a dead heat, with Packwood continuing to criticize AuCoin on attendance, his House bank account and the spotted owl, and AuCoin echoing the campaign of popular Presidential candidate Bill Clinton by accusing Packwood of favoring the wealthy over the middle class.


1992 United States Senate election in Oregon, General election, Campaign
The outcome of the bruising race was too close to call on election night, but on the following day, Packwood emerged as the winner with about 52% of the vote to AuCoin's 47. In his victory press conference, Packwood endorsed AuCoin for Secretary of the Interior in the Clinton administration. When told of Packwood's comments, AuCoin responded by saying "I think that's real special."


1992 United States Senate election in Oregon, Aftermath
Magnifying the controversy of the race was a decision by The Washington Post to delay until after the election coverage of its year-long investigation into detailed claims of sexual abuse and assault made by 10 women against Packwood. The paper ultimately published the story two months after election day. Oregon's largest daily newspaper, The Oregonian, did not break the story either, despite its own investigation and its congressional correspondent being subjected to Packwood's advances. The paper's editor would later admit to having been less than aggressive in pursuing the story due to concerns about "…ruining a man's career."


1992 United States Senate election in Oregon, Aftermath
A group of Oregon voters battled Packwood lawyers in briefs before the Senate Rules Committee in an unsuccessful attempt to persuade the panel to refuse to seat the senator on the grounds of election fraud for lying about the abuses. The senator admitted to the acts in 1994 and resigned after the Senate Ethics Committee censured him for his conduct in 1995.


1992 United States Senate election in Oregon, Aftermath
AuCoin was considered for Secretary of the Interior and Secretary of the Army in the new Clinton administration, though he was not offered either post. When news of Packwood's resignation broke, AuCoin stated that he would not come out of retirement to run for the seat. He also stated that he would not engage in professional lobbying, but was criticized the next year for becoming the chairman of the government relations practice group in the law firm Bogle & Gates.


1992 United States Senate election in Pennsylvania
The 1992 United States Senate election in Pennsylvania was held on November 3, 1992. Incumbent Republican U.S. Senator Arlen Specter won re-election to a third term.


1992 United States Senate election in Pennsylvania, 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 an ultra-conservative State Representative named Stephen Freind; although the incumbent won handily, the battle was expensive and featured many damaging attack ads.


1992 United States Senate election in Pennsylvania, Campaign
The senator was also highly targeted by women's groups for his involvement in the Clarence Thomas proceedings; in his questioning of Anita Hill, Specter appeared to show no sympathy for her allegations of sexual harassment. Furthermore, President Bush's popularity was rapidly declining in the state over high unemployment rates, and was subsequently dragging down Republican candidates.


1992 United States Senate election in Pennsylvania, Campaign
Yeakel won the five-way primary with 45% of the vote, easily defeating the endorsed candidate, Lieutenant Governor Mark Singel, in an election cycle dubbed by pundits as the "year of the woman". Polls put her ahead of Specter by double digits. But Specter ran a campaign that was praised by political analysts for being almost flawless. Despite Yeakel's personal wealth, her inexperience in politics led to fundraising problems; Specter outspent her by a two-to-one margin. This kept Yeakel from running television ads until September 23, a month and a half before the election.


1992 United States Senate election in Pennsylvania, Campaign
The moderate Specter portrayed Yeakel, despite her liberal attitude, as a member of an elitist blue-blood family. He emphasized her father's votes against the Civil Rights Act of 1964 while in Congress, her affiliation with an all-white country club, and her church's minister's vocal criticism of the Israeli government. It did not help matters that a newspaper strike in Pittsburgh crippled Yeakel's ability to introduce herself to voters in the southwest.


1992 United States Senate election in Pennsylvania, Campaign
Despite her mistakes, including a frequent tendency to mispronounce the names of places in which she was campaigning, Yeakel continued to perform solidly. On Election Day she captured by large numbers the traditional Democratic strongholds of the state, such as Pittsburgh, Scranton, and Erie. However, Specter undercut Yeakel's support in the state's most critical Democratic county: Philadelphia. Specter campaigned hard in black neighborhoods, and received the endorsement of the NAACP. Furthermore, he capitalized on the ambivalence of many Philadelphia Democratic leaders to Yeakel. A self-described reform candidate, Yeakel distanced herself from the city's ward leaders. As a result, while Yeakel carried Philadelphia by a solid 122,000-vote margin, she significantly underperformed Bill Clinton's total there.


1992 United States Senate election in Pennsylvania, Campaign
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 Lackawanna County, home to Scranton, and barely lost Allegheny County, home to Pittsburgh; as mentioned above, she easily carried the cities themselves.


1992 United States Senate election in South Carolina
The 1992 United States Senate election in South Carolina was held on November 3, 1992. Incumbent Democratic U.S. Senator Fritz Hollings won reelection to his fifth full term.


1992 United States Senate election in South Carolina, General election, Campaign
The race between Hollings and Hartnett was between two politicians from the Lowcoutry. Hartnett attacked Hollings for co-sponsoring a bill in 1983 that would have outlawed discrimination against homosexuals and Hollings shot back about questions of Hartnett's integrity for pushing for military contracts with a firm he had ties with in North Charleston. The anti-incumbency mood helped to bring Hartnett close to topping Hollings in the general election, but South Carolina voters traditionally support their incumbent politicians and Hollings was elected for another six-year term, albeit with a much reduced margin.


1992 United States Senate election in South Dakota
The 1992 United States Senate election in South Dakota was held on November 2, 1992. Incumbent Democratic U.S. Senator Tom Daschle won re-election to a second term.


1992 United States Senate election in Utah
The 1992 United States Senate election in Utah was held on November 3, 1992. Incumbent Republican U.S. Senator Jake Garn decided to retire instead of seeking a fourth term. Republican Bob Bennett won the open seat.


1992 United States Senate election in Vermont
The 1992 United States Senate election in Vermont was held on November 3, 1992. Incumbent Democratic U.S. Senator Patrick Leahy won re-election to a fourth term.


1992 United States Senate election in Washington
The 1992 United States Senate election in Washington was held on November 3, 1992. Incumbent Democratic Senator Brock Adams chose not to run for re-election to a second term after eight different woman made allegations that he had engaged in various acts of sexual misconduct, including harassment and rape. Adams denied the allegations, but his popularity statewide was weakened considerably by them, and he chose to retire rather than risk costing the party his seat.


1992 United States Senate election in Washington
State Senator Patty Murray defeated Republican U.S. Representative Rod Chandler in the race to succeed Adams. Chandler seemed to have the upper hand in one of the debates until, for some unknown reason, he quoted the Roger Miller song "Dang Me." He was further damaged by the unpopularity of President George H. W. Bush in the Pacific Northwest.


1992 United States Senate election in Wisconsin
The 1992 United States Senate election in Wisconsin was held on November 3, 1992. Incumbent Republican U.S. Senator Bob Kasten ran for re-election to a third term but was defeated by Democrat Russ Feingold.


1992 United States Senate election in Wisconsin, Democratic primary, Campaign
Feingold, who had little name recognition in the state and was campaigning in a primary against a pair of millionaire opponents, U.S. Congressman Jim Moody and Milwaukee businessman Joe Checota, adopted several proposals to gain the electorate's attention. The most memorable of these was a series of five promises written on Feingold's garage door in the form of a contract. Also noted was Feingold's advertising campaign, which was widely compared to that used by progressive candidate Paul Wellstone in his victorious Senate campaign in Minnesota.


1992 United States Senate election in Wisconsin, Democratic primary, Campaign
Shot in the form of home movies, the ads attempted to portray Feingold, who always referred to himself as "the underdog running for U.S. senate," as a down-to-earth, Capra-esque figure, taking the audience on a guided tour of the candidate's home and introducing them to his children, all of whom were enrolled in public school.


1992 United States Senate election in Wisconsin, Democratic primary, Campaign
The ads also contained a significant amount of humor. One featured Feingold meeting with an Elvis Presley impersonator, who offered Feingold his endorsement. (Bob Kasten responded to the Elvis endorsement with an advertisement featuring an Elvis impersonator attacking Feingold's record.) Another showed Feingold standing next to a pair of half-sized cardboard cut-outs of his opponents, refusing to "stoop to their level" as the two were shown literally slinging mud at one another.


1992 United States Senate election in Wisconsin, Democratic primary, Campaign
During the primary campaign, Feingold unveiled an 82-point plan that aimed to eliminate the deficit by the end of his first term. The plan, which called for, among other things, a raise in taxes and cuts in the defense budget, was derided as "extremist" by Republicans and "too liberal" by his Democratic opponents. Feingold also announced his support for strict campaign finance reform and a national health care system and voiced his opposition to term limits and new tax cuts.


1992 United States Senate election in Wisconsin, Democratic primary, Campaign
Feingold won by positioning himself as a quirky underdog who offered voters an alternative to what was seen by many as negative campaigning of opponents Jim Moody and Joe Checota. On primary day, Feingold, whose support had shown in the single digits throughout much of the campaign, surged to victory with 70 percent of the vote.


1992 United States Senate election in Wisconsin, General election, Results
While Bill Clinton, George H. W. Bush, and Ross Perot split the Wisconsin presidential vote 41%-37%-21%, Feingold beat Kasten by a margin of 53 percent to 46 percent.


1992 United States Senate elections
The 1992 United States Senate elections, held November 3, 1992, were elections for the United States Senate that coincided with Bill Clinton's victory in the presidential election. Both parties swapped a pair of seats, resulting in no net change in partisan breakdown.


1992 United States Senate elections
Democratic victories over Republicans John F. Seymour (in the special California race) and Bob Kasten (of Wisconsin) were cancelled out by the defeats of Democrats Wyche Fowler (of Georgia) and Terry Sanford (of North Carolina). The election of four new Democratic women to the Senate was notable (referred to in the press as the "Year of the Woman"). Due to a special election in California, both of California's Senate seats were up for election in 1992. These seats were won by Dianne Feinstein and Barbara Boxer. Thus, California became the first state to have elected women to occupy both of its Senate seats. Democrat Carol Moseley Braun (of Illinois), became the first African-American woman in the United States Senate.


1992 United States Senate elections
As of 2021, this is the last election cycle in which Republicans won a Senate election in New York and Democrats in Kentucky.


1992 United States Senate elections, Results summary
Seat totals include both the special elections in California and North Dakota, but vote totals exclude the North Dakota total.


1992 United States Senate elections, Results summary
Source: Office of the Clerk of the U.S. House of Representatives


1992 United States Senate elections, Race summary, Special elections
In these special elections, the winners were elected and seated in the fall of 1992.


1992 United States Senate elections, Race summary, Special elections
Elections are sorted by election date then state and class.


1992 United States Senate elections, Race summary, Elections leading to the next Congress
In these general elections, the winners were elected for the term beginning January 3, 1993; ordered by state.


1992 United States Senate elections, Closest races
In thirteen races, the margin of victory was under 10%.


1992 United States Senate elections, Alabama
Incumbent Democrat Richard Shelby won re-election to a second term, beating Richard Sellers, conservative activist.


1992 United States Senate elections, Alaska
Incumbent Republican Frank Murkowski sought re-election to a third term in the United States Senate. Tony Smith, the Democratic nominee and a former Commissioner of Economic Development, won his party's nomination in a crowded primary and faced off against Murkowski in the general election. Though Murkowski was held to a lower vote percentage than he received six years prior, he was ultimately re-elected.


1992 United States Senate elections, Arizona
Incumbent Republican John McCain won re-election to a second term over Democrat Claire Sargent, community activist and Independent former Governor Evan Mecham.


1992 United States Senate elections, Arkansas
Incumbent Democratic senator Dale Bumpers won re-election to a fourth term. His Republican opponent was future Arkansas lieutenant governor, governor, and two-time presidential candidate Mike Huckabee, a church pastor from Texarkana.


1992 United States Senate elections, Arkansas
The 1992 election coincided with Arkansas governor Bill Clinton's election as President of the United States, in which he also won his home state. In contrast with Bumpers' landslide where he won over 60% of the vote, Clinton won only 53% of the vote. Bumpers would serve another term in the U.S. Senate before deciding to retire in 1998.


1992 United States Senate elections, California
Due to the resignation of Pete Wilson to become Governor of California, there were two senate elections in California as both seats were up for election and both won by women. California ultimately become the first state to have two sitting women senators.


1992 United States Senate elections, California, California (regular)
Incumbent Democrat Alan Cranston decided to retire. Democratic U.S. Congresswoman Barbara Boxer won the open seat over Republican conservative TV talk show commentator Bruce Herschensohn. Both of California's senators were elected for the first time. This is not a unique occurrence; it would happen again in Tennessee in 1994, Kansas in 1996 and Georgia in 2020-2021. Fellow Democrat Dianne Feinstein, California's other senator, won the special election and was inaugurated in November 1992.


1992 United States Senate elections, California, California (regular)
The election between Boxer and Herschensohn was very close. At the eleventh hour, controversy emerged that the Republican nominee attended a strip club, which some Republican operatives later blamed for Herschensohn's loss.


1992 United States Senate elections, California, California (regular)
Four days before Election Day polls showed Herschensohn had narrowed a double digit deficit, trailing by 3 points. Political operative Bob Mulholland disrupted a campaign appearance with a large poster advertising a strip club shouting "Should the voters of California elect someone who frequently travels the strip joints of Hollywood?" Herschensohn admitted he had visited a strip club once, with his girlfriend and another couple. With press coverage of the story, Herschensohn spent the waning days of the campaign denying related allegations. When the votes were cast and counted, Barbara Boxer won the election by five points. Although Republicans have blamed the defeat on the underhanded tactics of the Boxer campaign, evidence of the connection between Mulholland's outburst and the campaign never surfaced.


1992 United States Senate elections, California, California (regular)
The election was very close. Boxer was declared the winner by the Associated Press at 1:22 A.M. Pacific Coast Time.


1992 United States Senate elections, California, California (special)
In the 1990 gubernatorial election, Republican senator Pete Wilson had beaten Democrat Dianne Feinstein for governor. He appointed John F. Seymour to the Senate to replace himself. In this special election held simultaneously with the regular Senate election, Feinstein defeated Seymour to serve the remaining 2 years of the term and took office November 10, only 7 days after the election. Fellow Democrat Barbara Boxer won the regular election and was inaugurated in January 1993.


1992 United States Senate elections, California, California (special)
Both of California's senators were elected for the first time. This is not a unique occurrence; it would happen again in Tennessee in 1994, Kansas in 1996, and Georgia in 2020.


1992 United States Senate elections, Colorado
Incumbent Democrat Tim Wirth decided to retire instead of seeking a second term. Democratic congressman Ben Nighthorse Campbell won the open seat, beating Republican State senator Terry Considine.


1992 United States Senate elections, Connecticut
Incumbent Democrat Christopher Dodd won re-election for a third term over Republican businessman Brook Johnson.


1992 United States Senate elections, Connecticut
Johnson, a millionaire businessman who had never run for public office before, spent about $900,000 during the primary campaign. His television and radio commercials said that he would bring "a dose of success Washington needs." Dodd had $2 million cash on hand following the primaries.


1992 United States Senate elections, Florida
Incumbent Democrat Bob Graham won re-election to a second term, beating Republican former U.S. Representative Bill Grant.


1992 United States Senate elections, Florida
Graham defeated Grant in a landslide, as Grant won just one county in the state (Okaloosa County, Florida). There were no third party or independent candidates.


1992 United States Senate elections, Georgia
Incumbent Democrat Wyche Fowler did not receive a simple majority in the general election, which demanded a runoff. Paul Coverdell, former Director of the Peace Corps and former State senator, edged out Fowler in the runoff with a narrow margin.


1992 United States Senate elections, Georgia
The general primary was held July 21, 1992. A run-off between the top two Republican contenders was held on August 11, in which Paul Coverdell defeated Bob Barr.


1992 United States Senate elections, Georgia
Results for the first round showed that since Paul Coverdell did not win a majority of the vote, a runoff was held between him and Barr. Coverdell subsequently won the runoff.


1992 United States Senate elections, Georgia
As no candidate reached a majority on November 3, a runoff election was held on November 24, which Coverdell won.


1992 United States Senate elections, Hawaii
Incumbent Democrat Daniel Inouye won re-election to a sixth term over Republican State senator Rick Reed.


1992 United States Senate elections, Idaho
Incumbent Republican Steve Symms decided to retire instead of seeking a third term. Republican Mayor of Boise Dirk Kempthorne won the open seat, beating Democratic congressman Richard H. Stallings.


1992 United States Senate elections, Illinois
Incumbent Democrat Alan J. Dixon decided to run for re-election a third term, but was defeated in the primary against Carol Moseley Braun, Cook County Recorder of Deeds and former State Representative, who then won the general election over Republican Richard S. Williamson, former Assistant Secretary of State for International Organization Affairs. Braun (whose victory coincided with Bill Clinton's win in the presidential election and Illinois) made history in this election by becoming the first African-American woman ever elected to the U.S Senate, and also the first African-American elected to the U.S Senate as a Democrat.


1992 United States Senate elections, Illinois
This defeat shocked observers; at the time no senator had been defeated in a primary in over a decade and Dixon had a long record of electoral success. He was a moderate Democrat, who recently voted to confirm Clarence Thomas to the Supreme Court. Braun, a black woman and known reformist liberal, got a large share of black, liberal, and women voters ("The Year of the Woman").


1992 United States Senate elections, Illinois
In addition, she carried Cook County, Illinois, by far the most populated county in the state. Another factor was the third candidate in the race, multi-millionaire attorney Al Hofeld. Hofeld drew away some of the moderate and conservative Democrats who normally supported Dixon. He also spent a lot of money running advertisements attacking Dixon, weakening his support.


1992 United States Senate elections, Illinois
Moseley Braun won the 1992 Illinois Senate Race by a fairly comfortable margin. Moseley Braun did well as expected in Cook County home of Chicago. Williamson did well in the Chicago collar counties, and most northern parts of the state. Moseley Braun had a surprisingly strong showing in southern Illinois, which Republicans had come to dominate in the last several decades. Braun also did well in Rock Island County.


1992 United States Senate elections, Indiana
Incumbent Republican Dan Coats won re-election to his first full term, beating the Democratic Indiana Secretary of State Joe Hogsett.


1992 United States Senate elections, Indiana
When incumbent Republican Dan Quayle resigned from the Senate after being elected Vice President of the United States in 1988, Coats was appointed to Quayle's former seat. He then won re-election to serve the remainder of the term in 1990.


1992 United States Senate elections, Indiana
Coats won 79 of Indiana's counties compared to 13 for Hogsett.


1992 United States Senate elections, Iowa
Incumbent Republican Chuck Grassley ran for re-election to a third term in the United States Senate, which he won easily against his Democratic opponent, State senator Jean Hall Lloyd-Jones.


1992 United States Senate elections, Kansas
Incumbent Republican senator Bob Dole won re-election to a fifth term, defeating Democratic nominee Gloria O'Dell, teacher and former journalist. Nearly two decades after his failed vice-presidential bid in 1976, this would be Dole's last election to the Senate. He would resign in 1996 while running for President of the United States. Dole also became the Republican Leader of the United States Senate seven years prior.


1992 United States Senate elections, Kentucky
Incumbent Democratic U.S senator Wendell Ford won re-election to a fourth term, easily beating Republican State senator David L. Williams. As of 2021, this is the last Senate election in Kentucky in which a Democrat won.


1992 United States Senate elections, Kentucky
Denny Ormerod, a machinist from Louisville dropped out before the primary election. Though Williams and Thompson represented opposing factions in the state Republican Party – Williams managed Larry Hopkins' 1991 primary campaign while Thompson worked full-time for Hopkins' primary opponent Larry Forgy – the two virtually ignored each other in the primary campaign, choosing instead to focus their rhetoric against Ford. Thompson did question Williams' conservative credentials on grounds that he voted in favor of the tax increase associated with the Kentucky Education Reform Act.


1992 United States Senate elections, Kentucky
Ormerod's campaign largely focused on socially conservative issues, but it was Williams who secured the endorsement of Kentucky Right to Life, who cited his lawsuit to free three anti-abortion bills from committee in the 1992 legislative session. As a result of the largely uninspiring primary campaigns, there was only an 18% voter turnout in the Republican primary. Williams won the nomination.


1992 United States Senate elections, Kentucky
Ford, the Senate Majority Whip and a former governor, raised $2.4 million for his campaign, about eight times the amount Williams raised. Given his limited finances, Williams relied on news conferences and interviews on small town radio stations to get his message out. Williams repeatedly lamented that Ford would not agree to a formal debate; Ford said that could not be arranged because Congress was still in session and he needed to be in Washington.


1992 United States Senate elections, Kentucky
During the campaign, Williams attempted to paint Ford as too liberal for Kentucky voters, citing his votes against the Gulf War and Clarence Thomas' confirmation to the U.S. Supreme Court. Both candidates declared their support for a Balanced Budget Amendment, but Williams said that Ford's support of pork barrel projects for the state and a procedural vote that kept the amendment from a vote in 1991 were evidence that Ford's support was not genuine.


1992 United States Senate elections, Kentucky
Ford had no trouble winning on election night. Ford won easily, despite the fact that fellow Democrat Bill Clinton was not declared the winner of the presidential race in Kentucky until around 10:00 E.S.T. Ford pulled big margins out of the majority of Kentucky's 124 counties. This would be Ford's last term in the senate. He served his final term from January 3, 1993, to January 3, 1999. Ford died some fifteen years after his retirement at the age of 90.


1992 United States Senate elections, Louisiana
Incumbent Democrat John Breaux won a majority in Louisiana's jungle primary on October 3, 1992, winning re-election to another term.


1992 United States Senate elections, Maryland
Incumbent Democrat Barbara Mikulski won re-election to a second term over Republican Alan Keyes, former Assistant Secretary of State for International Organization Affairs.


1992 United States Senate elections, Missouri
Incumbent Republican Kit Bond won re-election to a second term over Democratic St. Louis County Councilwoman Geri Rothman-Serot.


1992 United States Senate elections, Nevada
Although nearly 10% of the electorate voted for neither of the two major U.S. political parties, incumbent Democrat Harry Reid ultimately beat Republican cattle rancher and President of Nevada Cattlemen's Association Demar Dahl.


1992 United States Senate elections, New Hampshire
Incumbent Republican Warren Rudman decided to retire. Republican Governor Judd Gregg won the open seat, beating Democrat John Rauh, former CEO of Griffon Corporation.


1992 United States Senate elections, New York
Incumbent Republican Al D'Amato won re-election to a third term over Democrat Robert Abrams, New York State Attorney General and former Borough president of the Bronx. As of 2021, this is the last Senate election in New York won by a Republican.


1992 United States Senate elections, New York
Early in the campaign, environmentalist attorney, Laurance S. Rockefeller, Jr. nephew of the former governor Nelson, tried to challenge D'Amato in the Republican primary, but fell short of the required signatures to get onto the primary ballot. D'Amato summarily went unchallenged.


1992 United States Senate elections, New York
The Democratic primary campaign featured State Attorney General Robert Abrams, former U.S. Congresswoman and 1984 vice presidential candidate Geraldine Ferraro, Reverend Al Sharpton, Congressman Robert J. Mrazek, and New York City Comptroller and former Congresswoman Elizabeth Holtzman. Abrams was considered the early front-runner. Ferraro emphasized her career as a teacher, prosecutor, congresswoman, and mother, and talked about how she was tough on crime. Ferraro drew attacks from the media and her opponents over her husband John Zaccaro's finances and business relationships.


1992 United States Senate elections, New York
Ferraro became the front-runner, capitalizing on her star power from 1984 and using the campaign attacks against her as an explicitly feminist rallying point for women voters. As the primary date neared, her lead began to dwindle under the charges, and she released additional tax returns from the 1980s to try to defray the attacks. Holtzman ran a negative ad accusing Ferraro and Zaccaro of taking more than $300,000 in rent in the 1980s from a pornographer with purported ties to organized crime. The final debates were nasty, and Holtzman in particular constantly attacked Ferraro's integrity and finances.


1992 United States Senate elections, New York
In an unusual election-eve television broadcast, Ferraro talked about the ethnic slurs made against her as an Italian-American. In the September 15, 1992 primary, Abrams edged out Ferraro by less than percentage point, winning 37 percent of the vote to 36 percent. Ferraro did not concede she had lost for two weeks.


1992 United States Senate elections, New York
After Abrams emerged as the nominee, the Democrats remained divided. In particular, Abrams spent much of the remainder of the campaign trying to get Ferraro's endorsement. Ferraro, enraged and bitter after the nature of the primary, ignored Abrams and accepted Bill Clinton's request to campaign for his presidential bid instead. She was eventually persuaded by state party leaders into giving an unenthusiastic endorsement with just three days to go before the general election, in exchange for an apology by Abrams for the tone of the primary.


1992 United States Senate elections, New York
Abrams was also criticized for calling D'Amato a fascist, and he narrowly lost the general election as a result of these controversies.


1992 United States Senate elections, North Carolina
Incumbent Democrat Terry Sanford lost re-election to a second term to Republican Lauch Faircloth, former State Secretary of Commerce.


1992 United States Senate elections, North Carolina
In 1990, after 40 years as a Democrat, Faircloth switched his party registration and began preparations to seek the Republican Senate nomination in 1992. Enjoying the support of senator Jesse Helms's political organization, Faircloth defeated Charlotte mayor Sue Myrick and former congressman Walter E. Johnston, III in the primary. His opponent in the general election was his former ally, Terry Sanford.


1992 United States Senate elections, North Carolina
Although Sanford had helped Faircloth raise money for his failed gubernatorial bid in 1984, he angered Faircloth two years later when he allegedly dismissed Faircloth's chances in a statewide contest if the two ran against each other for the Democratic nomination for the Senate. Faircloth withdrew from the 1986 race after Sanford "blindsided" him by announcing his candidacy.


1992 United States Senate elections, North Carolina
Faircloth attacked Sanford as a tax-and-spend liberal, and despite a poor performance in a September televised debate, Faircloth won the seat by a 100,000-vote margin. Sanford may have been weakened by his unpopular vote against authorizing military force in the Persian Gulf War, and he suffered health problems in the summer of 1992.


1992 United States Senate elections, North Dakota
Due to the death of Quentin Burdick in September of that year, there were two senate elections in North Dakota.


1992 United States Senate elections, North Dakota, North Dakota (regular)
Incumbent North Dakota Democratic NPL Party incumbent Kent Conrad retired, having given a pledge that he would not run for re-election if the federal budget deficit was higher than when he was first elected; however when the other Senate seat became vacant, he ran in the special election. Dem-NPL U.S. Congressman Byron Dorgan won the open seat, beating Republican Steve Sydness, CEO of Endurance International Group.


1992 United States Senate elections, North Dakota, North Dakota (special)
The special election was held December 4, 1992 to fill the United States Senate seat vacated by the late Quentin Burdick. Burdick's widow, Jocelyn Burdick, was appointed as a temporary replacement until the election was held. Dem -NPLer Kent Conrad, who held North Dakota's other senate seat for one term since 1986, had not run for re-election to his own seat, holding himself to a campaign promise pledging to reduce the federal deficit. U.S. senator Kent Conrad won the election over Republican State Representative Jack Dalrymple.


1992 United States Senate elections, North Dakota, North Dakota (special)
Burdick's death provided an opportunity for Conrad to return to the Senate in a fight for an open seat. However, some, particularly his political opponents, saw this as a breach of his promise in spirit if not letter, Conrad's high approval ratings as senator carried through to a victory against Republican state legislator Jack Dalrymple.


1992 United States Senate elections, Ohio
Incumbent Democrat John Glenn won re-election to a fourth term, coinciding with Bill Clinton's narrow win during the presidential election. Glenn's voting percentage of 51% over Republican Lieutenant Governor of Ohio Mike DeWine represented the worst performance of his four runs for the Senate, likely due to the presence of third-party candidate Martha Grevatt of the far-left Workers World Party. As of 2020, this is the last time the Democrats have won the Class 3 Senate Seat from Ohio.


1992 United States Senate elections, Oklahoma
Incumbent Republican Don Nickles won re-election to his third term, beating Democratic former State Representative Steve Lewis.


1992 United States Senate elections, Oregon
Incumbent Republican Bob Packwood won re-election to his fifth term.


1992 United States Senate elections, Oregon
As the election season got underway, analysts from both major parties predicted that Packwood would have one of the toughest seats to defend in what was anticipated to be a volatile election year. Packwood was regarded as one of the nation's "most powerful elected officials" with "extraordinary political instincts." But the state's largest newspaper, The Oregonian, had described AuCoin (Packwood's presumed main challenger) as having "persistence, imagination and clout [that] have made him the most powerful congressman in Oregon and one of the most influential members from the Northwest."


1992 United States Senate elections, Oregon
For AuCoin, however, first came the Democratic primary. He faced Portland attorney Joe Wetzel and Bend businessman Harry Lonsdale in what became a "brutal, bitter" contest. Lonsdale, who had run a close race against incumbent Mark Hatfield for Oregon's other Senate seat in 1990, emerged as AuCoin's principal rival; Wetzel, who criticized Packwood and AuCoin as long-term, ineffective members of Congress, trailed throughout the race, and was not invited to an April debate sponsored by the City Club of Portland. Lonsdale took on "the Les AuCoin-Mark Hatfield-Bob Packwood coalition" as his primary cause, stating "I consider Les AuCoin a good man who has been corrupted by PAC money over the years".


1992 United States Senate elections, Oregon
In a race the Seattle Times called "as negative as many voters can remember," Lonsdale attacked AuCoin as "corrupt" and tied to the timber industry. Lonsdale's environmental credentials also came under scrutiny, and AuCoin noted Lonsdale's reversal of support for nuclear power and belated opposition to the re-opening of Trojan Nuclear Power Plant. AuCoin turned accusations of undue influence back on Lonsdale, pointing out that his company (Bend Research) had received millions in federal defense contracts.


1992 United States Senate elections, Oregon
Even during the primary, Packwood and AuCoin traded barbs on various issues. Packwood joined Lonsdale in criticizing AuCoin for his involvement in what was reported as a rash of check-bouncing among members of Congress; AuCoin characterized the issue as a series of mistakes, rather than gross abuses. In what was believed to be an unprecedented move, Packwood attempted to influence the Democratic primary's outcome by running television ads against AuCoin.


1992 United States Senate elections, Oregon
Ultimately, the results of the Democratic primary were so close that an automatic recount was triggered. AuCoin held a news conference on May 23 in the South Park Blocks stating he would wait for the recount, but the margin was currently 248 votes in his favor. On June 18, over a month after the primary election, AuCoin was certified as having won by 330 votes. Upon conceding the race, Lonsdale pondered mounting a write-in campaign, reiterating that Oregon needed an "outsider" in the Senate.


1992 United States Senate elections, Oregon
Packwood had gone through a divorce in 1991, and his ex-wife threatened to run against him amid mounting concerns about his "eye for the ladies." The socially conservative Oregon Citizens Alliance (OCA) was at the apex of its statewide prominence with 1992's anti-gay Measure 9 and its newly formed American Heritage Party (AHP). The group endorsed Republican challenger Joe Lutz, who had run against Packwood in the past on a family values platform; but Lutz soon withdrew, announcing a divorce of his own.


1992 United States Senate elections, Oregon
As early as January, the OCA considered backing former gubernatorial candidate Al Mobley as an independent or as a member of the AHP. Mobley ultimately decided in mid-August not to run, stating that he could not bear the idea that he might be responsible for causing AuCoin to be elected. Packwood's most significant challenge thus came from little-known conservative Medford attorney John DeZell, who campaigned on the family values issue. Packwood cruised to victory over DeZell and several other candidates.


1992 United States Senate elections, Oregon
By the end of June, when the recount was complete, AuCoin was nearly out of campaign funds; Packwood entered the general election race with $3.2 million and was ranked sixth nationwide among senators raising funds outside their home state during the 1990–1992 election season.


1992 United States Senate elections, Oregon
AuCoin opposed weakening the Endangered Species Act (ESA) to erase the Northern Spotted Owl's impact on the timber industry, but Packwood (“one of the timber industry’s chief allies,” according to Oregon State University political scientist William Lunch) assailed “environmental extremists” and introduced legislation to convene a presidential cabinet committee to exempt the endangered owl from the ESA.


1992 United States Senate elections, Oregon
In September, Packwood pulled ads that had falsely criticized AuCoin for missing votes while speaking to special interest groups. By October, Packwood had raised $8 million, spending $5.4 million more than AuCoin, and leading all Senate incumbents. Yet that fall, the two candidates were in a dead heat, with Packwood continuing to criticize AuCoin on attendance, his House bank account and the spotted owl, and AuCoin echoing the campaign of popular Presidential candidate Bill Clinton by accusing Packwood of favoring the wealthy over the middle class.


1992 United States Senate elections, Oregon
The outcome of the bruising race was too close to call on election night, but on the following day, Packwood emerged as the winner with about 52% of the vote to AuCoin's 47. In his victory press conference, Packwood endorsed for AuCoin for Secretary of the Interior in the Clinton administration. When told of Packwood's comments, AuCoin responded by saying "I think that's real special."


1992 United States Senate elections, Pennsylvania
Incumbent Republican Arlen Specter won re-election to a third term over Democratic millionaire Lynn Yeakel director of women's studies at Drexel University College of Medicine and daughter of former U.S. Congressman Porter Hardy of Virginia (from Montgomery County).


1992 United States Senate elections, Pennsylvania
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 an ultra-conservative State Representative named Stephen Freind; although the incumbent won handily, the battle was expensive and featured many damaging attack ads.


1992 United States Senate elections, Pennsylvania
The senator was also highly targeted by women's groups for his involvement in the Clarence Thomas proceedings; in his questioning of Anita Hill, Specter appeared to show no sympathy for her allegations of sexual harassment. Furthermore, President Bush's popularity was rapidly declining in the state over high unemployment rates and was subsequently dragging down Republican candidates.


1992 United States Senate elections, Pennsylvania
Yeakel won the five-way primary with 45% of the vote, easily defeating the endorsed candidate, Lieutenant Governor Mark Singel, in an election cycle dubbed by pundits as the "year of the woman." Polls put her ahead of Specter by double digits. But Specter ran a campaign that was praised by political analysts for being almost flawless. Despite Yeakel's personal wealth, her inexperience in politics led to fund raising problems; in turn, Specter ran television ads long before the Democrat. The moderate Specter portrayed Yeakel, despite her liberal attitude, as a member of an elitist blue-blood family; he emphasized her father's votes against the Civil Rights Act of 1964 while in Congress, her affiliation with an all-white country club, and her church's minister's vocal criticism of the Israeli government.


1992 United States Senate elections, Pennsylvania
Despite her mistakes, including a frequent tendency to mispronounce the names of places in which she was campaigning, Yeakel continued to perform solidly, and on Election Day, she captured by large numbers the traditional Democratic strongholds of the state, such as Pittsburgh, Scranton, and Erie. However, Specter undercut Yeakel's support in the state's most critical Democratic county: Philadelphia. Specter campaigned hard in black neighborhoods and received the endorsement of the NAACP.