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 County results Precinct resultsFeingold: 40–50% 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% 80–90% >90% Kasten: 40–50% 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% 80–90% >90% Tie: | |||||||||||||||||
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The1992 United States Senate election in Wisconsin was held on November 3, 1992. IncumbentRepublican U.S. SenatorBob Kasten ran for re-election to a third term but was defeated byDemocratRuss Feingold.
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Bob Kasten (incumbent) | 197,488 | 80.49% | |
| Republican | Roger W. Faulkner | 47,804 | 19.48% | |
| Republican | Write ins | 79 | 0.03% | |
| Total votes | 245,371 | 100.00% | ||
Feingold, who had little name recognition in the state and was campaigning in a primary against a pair ofmillionaire opponents, U.S. CongressmanJim 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 acontract.[2] Also noted was Feingold'sadvertising campaign, which was widely compared to that used byprogressive candidatePaul Wellstone in his victorious Senate campaign inMinnesota. Shot in the form ofhome movies, the ads attempted to portray Feingold, who always referred to himself as "theunderdog 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 inpublic school.[3]
The ads also contained a significant amount of humor. One featured Feingold meeting with anElvis Presley impersonator, who offered Feingold his endorsement.[4] (Bob Kasten responded to the Elvis endorsement with an advertisement featuring an Elvis impersonator attacking Feingold's record.[5]) 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.[3]
During the primary campaign, Feingold unveiled an 82-point plan that aimed to eliminate thedeficit by the end of his first term.[6] The plan, which called for, among other things, a raise intaxes and cuts in thedefense budget, was derided as "extremist" byRepublicans and "tooliberal" by his Democratic opponents. Feingold also announced his support for strictcampaign finance reform and anational health care system and voiced his opposition toterm limits and newtax cuts.[7]
Feingold won by positioning himself as a quirky underdog who offered voters an alternative to what was seen by many as negative campaigning of opponentsJim Moody and Joe Checota.[8] 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.[7]
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Russ Feingold | 367,746 | 69.67% | |
| Democratic | Jim Moody | 74,472 | 14.11% | |
| Democratic | Joe Checota | 71,570 | 13.56% | |
| Democratic | Thomas Keller | 8,678 | 1.64% | |
| Democratic | Edmond C. Hou-Seye | 5,019 | 0.95% | |
| Democratic | Write-ins | 359 | 0.07% | |
| Total votes | 527,844 | 100.00% | ||
WhileBill Clinton,George H. W. Bush, andRoss Perot split the Wisconsin presidential vote 41% to 37% to 21%, Feingold beat Kasten by a margin of 53% to 46%.[8]
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Russ Feingold | 1,290,662 | 52.58% | |
| Republican | Bob Kasten (incumbent) | 1,129,599 | 46.02% | |
| Independent | Patrick Johnson | 16,513 | 0.67% | |
| Libertarian | William Bittner | 9,147 | 0.37% | |
| Independent | Mervin A. Hanson, Sr. | 3,264 | 0.13% | |
| Grassroots | Robert L. Kundert | 2,747 | 0.11% | |
| Independent Populist | Joseph Selliken | 2,733 | 0.11% | |
| Total votes | 2,454,665 | 100.00% | ||
| Democraticgain fromRepublican | ||||
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