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 County results Harkin: 30–40% 40–50% 50–60% 60–70% Lightfoot: 40–50% 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% 80–90% | |||||||||||||||||
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The1996 United States Senate election in Iowa was held on November 5, 1996. IncumbentDemocratic U.S. SenatorTom Harkin sought re-election to a third term in office, and he was challenged by U.S. CongressmanJim Ross Lightfoot fromIowa's 3rd congressional district. Lightfoot had won theRepublican primary against two opponents, while Harkin had won his primary uncontested, so both moved on to the general election, where they engaged in a toughly fought campaign. Ultimately, Harkin was successful in his bid and defeated Lightfoot, albeit by the narrowest margin of his career.
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Tom Harkin (incumbent) | 98,737 | 99.19% | |
| Democratic | Write-ins | 810 | 0.81% | |
| Total votes | 99,547 | 100.00% | ||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Jim Ross Lightfoot | 101,608 | 61.48% | |
| Republican | Maggie Tinsman | 40,955 | 24.78% | |
| Republican | Steve Grubbs | 22,554 | 13.65% | |
| Republican | Write-ins | 153 | 0.09% | |
| Total votes | 165,270 | 100.00% | ||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Tom Harkin (incumbent) | 634,166 | 51.81% | −2.66% | |
| Republican | Jim Ross Lightfoot | 571,807 | 46.71% | +1.30% | |
| Independent | Sue Atkinson | 9,768 | 0.80% | ||
| Natural Law | Fred Gratzon | 4,248 | 0.35% | ||
| Independent | Joe Sulentic | 1,941 | 0.16% | ||
| Socialist Workers | Shirley E. Pena | 1,844 | 0.15% | ||
| Write-in | 280 | 0.02% | |||
| Majority | 62,359 | 5.09% | −3.96% | ||
| Turnout | 1,224,054 | ||||
| Democratichold | Swing | ||||
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