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 County results Precinct resultsIsakson: 40–50% 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% 80–90% >90% Majette: 40–50% 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% 80–90% >90% Tie: 40–50% 50% No data | |||||||||||||||||
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The2004 United States Senate election in Georgia took place on November 2, 2004, alongside other elections to theUnited States Senate in other states as well as elections to theUnited States House of Representatives and various state and local elections. This election was the fifth consecutive even-number year in which a senate election was held in Georgia after elections in1996,1998,2000, and2002. Incumbent Democratic U.S. SenatorZell Miller decided to retire instead of seeking a first full term in office, leaving an open seat.
RepresentativeJohnny Isakson, aRepublican, won the open seat, defeated Democratic nomineeDenise Majette, who was both the first African American and the first woman to be nominated for Senate in Georgia. Isakson would remain in the Senate until his resignation on December 31, 2019. This election was the first open-seat United States Senate election in Georgia for this seat since1956 and marked the first time in history that Republicans held both of the state’s Senate seats.
Following reports that Miller would retire, Democratic leaders unsuccessfully tried to convince outgoing GovernorRoy Barnes to run for Senate.Max Cleland, a former Senator who lost his seat in the2002 election, was also considered a possible candidate before choosing not to run.[1]
Majette's announcement that she would seek to replace Miller caught Democrats by surprise, as she was not on anyone's call list when Democrats began seeking a candidate to replace Miller. Further skepticism among Democrats about the viability of her candidacy surfaced when she announced that God had told her to run for the Senate.[citation needed]
Nominee:
Eliminated in Runoff:
Eliminated in Primary:
Declined to run:
Results[3] for the first round showed that since Denise Majette did not win a majority of the vote, a runoff was held between her and Cliff Oxford.
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Denise Majette | 258,480 | 41.3% | |
| Democratic | Cliff Oxford | 128,540 | 20.6% | |
| Democratic | Jim Boyd | 87,702 | 14.3% | |
| Democratic | Mary Squires | 55,046 | 8.1% | |
| Democratic | Leigh Baier | 47,487 | 7.6% | |
| Democratic | Sid Cottingham | 16,200 | 2.9% | |
| Democratic | Govind N. Patel | 9,166 | 1.4% | |
| Total votes | 493,226 | 100.0% | ||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Denise Majette | 161,733 | 59.4% | |
| Democratic | Cliff Oxford | 110,526 | 40.6% | |
Nominee
Defeated in primary
Declined to run
Positioning himself as a political outsider, businessmanHerman Cain spent nearly $1 million of his own money on his Senate campaign.[6] To discredit Cain, Isakson's campaign dropped campaign mail pieces noting that Cain had donated to Democrats in the past, such asHillary Clinton andTed Kennedy.[7]
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Johnny Isakson | 346,765 | 53.2% | |
| Republican | Herman Cain | 170,464 | 26.2% | |
| Republican | Mac Collins | 134,053 | 20.6% | |
Majette received extremely important endorsements from U.S. SenatorsMary Landrieu of Louisiana andDebbie Stabenow of Michigan, along with many others in Washington who campaigned and raised money for Majette. Her Senate campaign slogan was "I'll be nobody's Senator, but yours."
A number of factors led to Majette's loss. These include her late start, her valuable time and money spent in the runoff, larger conservative turnout from a proposed constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriages (which Majette opposed), the popularity of PresidentGeorge W. Bush in Georgia, and her lack of experience (being a one-term congresswoman).
| Source | Ranking | As of |
|---|---|---|
| Sabato's Crystal Ball[9] | Safe R(flip) | November 1, 2004 |
| Poll source | Date(s) administered | Sample size[a] | Margin of error | Johnny Isakson (R) | Denise Majette (D) | Other / Undecided |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SurveyUSA[10] | October 28–30, 2004 | 624 (LV) | ± 4.0% | 56% | 40% | 5% |
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Johnny Isakson | 1,864,205 | 57.88% | +19.97% | |
| Democratic | Denise Majette | 1,287,695 | 39.98% | −18.22% | |
| Libertarian | Allen Buckley | 69,051 | 2.14% | +2.14% | |
| Majority | 576,510 | 17.90% | |||
| Turnout | 3,220,951 | ||||
| Republicangain fromDemocratic | Swing | ||||
Official campaign websites (archived)
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