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The2010 United States Senate election in Louisiana was held on November 2, 2010.Republican incumbentU.S. SenatorDavid Vitter won re-election to a second term, becoming the first Republican ever to be re-elected to the United States Senate fromLouisiana.
Vitter faced a potentially serious challenge in the Republican primary as well as the general election.Lieutenant GeneralRussel L. Honoré, who is best known for serving as commander ofJoint Task Force Katrina responsible for coordinating military relief efforts forHurricane Katrina-affected areas across theGulf Coast, was allegedly mulling over whether or not to challenge Vitter in the Republican Primary.[1]Tony Perkins, a former Louisiana state representative and current president of the socially conservativeFamily Research Council, acknowledged interest in running against Vitter because of the prostitution scandal.[2][3] Nonetheless, Perkins decided not to run and endorsed Vitter for reelection.[4]
Some speculated that Vitter's reelection might have become complicated, by the prostitution scandal revealed in 2007, but he continued to lead in aggregate polling against potential opponents.[5]
Following a movement to draft him into the race,[6]John Cooksey, a formerU.S. Representative, appeared poised to put together a challenge, planning on spending $200,000 of his own money.[7] Cooksey, however, pulled back and did not qualify.
A campaign to draftporn actressStormy Daniels began in early 2009. She considered whether to run before ultimately declining.[8][9][10]
On June 14, 2009, CongressmanCharlie Melançon announced his intentions to run for Senate in 2010. Melançon, who was representing Louisiana's3rd Congressional District since 2005, released the announcement to his supporters, saying that "Louisiana needs a different approach, more bi-partisan, more disciplined, more honest and with a whole lot more common sense." Melançon was a leader of theBlue Dog Coalition, a group offiscally conservative Democrats who aim to lower the deficit and reform the budget.[11][12]
In the weeks before the election a major concern for Vitter's camp was possibly voter apathy about the race. For example,publisher Rolfe H. McCollister Jr., in hisGreater Baton Rouge Business Report, endorsed fellow RepublicanJay Dardenne over Democrat Caroline Fayard in the simultaneous race forLieutenant Governor of Louisiana, but then explicitly made "no endorsement" for U.S. Senate:
| Poll Source | Dates administered | Charlie Melançon | Neeson Chauvin | Undecided |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Clarus Research Group[14] | August 15–16, 2010 | 43% | 3% | 52% |
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Charlie Melançon | 77,702 | 70.61% | |
| Democratic | Neeson Chauvin | 19,507 | 17.73% | |
| Democratic | Cary Deaton | 12,842 | 11.67% | |
| Total votes | 110,051 | 100% | ||
| Poll Source | Dates administered | David Vitter (R) | Chet Traylor (R) | Undecided |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Clarus Research Group[14] | August 15–16, 2010 | 74% | 5% | 18% |
| Public Policy Polling[16] | August 21–22, 2010 | 81% | 5% | 9% |
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | David Vitter (Incumbent) | 85,179 | 87.6% | |
| Republican | Chet Traylor | 6,838 | 7.03% | |
| Republican | Nick Accardo | 5,221 | 5.37% | |
| Total votes | 97,238 | 100% | ||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Libertarian | Randall Todd Hayes | 1,529 | 61.68% | |
| Libertarian | Anthony "Tony G" Gentile | 950 | 38.32% | |
| Total votes | 2,479 | 100% | ||
Melançon heavily criticized Vitter forprostitution sex scandal.[19][20] Vitter released television advertising criticizing Melançon for his support for Obama's stimulus package and his support foramnesty forillegal immigrants.[21]
Melançon claimed "In August, Melançon challenged Vitter to a series of five live, televised town hall-style debates across the state. In his 2004 campaign for Senate, Vitter committed to five live, televised debates. Since Melançon issued the challenge, Vitter and Melançon have been invited to a total of seven live, televised debates. Vitter only accepted invitations to debates hosted by WWL-TV and WDSU-TV, both in New Orleans."[22]
| Source | Ranking | As of |
|---|---|---|
| Cook Political Report[26] | Lean R | October 26, 2010 |
| Rothenberg[27] | Likely R | October 22, 2010 |
| RealClearPolitics[28] | Likely R | October 26, 2010 |
| Sabato's Crystal Ball[29] | Likely R | October 21, 2010 |
| CQ Politics[30] | Likely R | October 26, 2010 |
| Poll source | Date(s) administered | David Vitter (R) | Charlie Melançon (D) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Research 2000[31] | March 2–4, 2009 | 48% | 41% |
| Public Policy Polling[32] | July 17–19, 2009 | 44% | 32% |
| Rasmussen Reports[33] | October 5, 2009 | 46% | 36% |
| Rasmussen Reports[34] | January 14, 2010 | 53% | 35% |
| YouGovPolimetrix[35] | January 6–11, 2010 | 52% | 32% |
| Rasmussen Reports[36] | February 10, 2010 | 57% | 33% |
| Rasmussen Reports[37] | March 10, 2010 | 57% | 34% |
| Rasmussen Reports[34] | April 7, 2010 | 52% | 36% |
| Magellan Strategies[38] | June 10–13, 2010 | 51% | 31% |
| Public Policy Polling[39] | June 12–13, 2010 | 46% | 37% |
| Rasmussen Reports[40] | June 24, 2010 | 53% | 35% |
| Clarus Research Group[14] | August 15–16, 2010 | 48% | 36% |
| Public Policy Polling[41] | August 21–22, 2010 | 51% | 41% |
| Rasmussen Reports[42] | August 30, 2010 | 54% | 33% |
| Magellan Strategies[43] | September 19, 2010 | 52% | 34% |
| Magellan Strategies[43] | October 10, 2010 | 51% | 35% |
| Anazalone[44] | October 22, 2010 | 46% | 43% |
| Clarus Research Group[45] | October 21–24, 2010 | 50% | 38% |
| Magellan Strategies[46] | October 24, 2010 | 52% | 35% |
| Candidate (Party) | Receipts | Disbursements | Cash On Hand | Debt |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| David Vitter (R) | $8,384,938 | $6,833,900 | $3,555,994 | $0 |
| Charles Melançon (D) | $3,711,556 | $4,043,362 | $445,853 | $0 |
| Source: Federal Election Commission[47] | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | David Vitter (incumbent) | 715,415 | 56.56% | +5.53% | |
| Democratic | Charlie Melançon | 476,572 | 37.67% | +8.44% | |
| Libertarian | Randall Hayes | 13,957 | 1.1% | N/A | |
| Independent | Michael Brown | 9,973 | 0.79% | N/A | |
| Independent | Mike Spears | 9,190 | 0.73% | N/A | |
| Independent | Ernest Wooton | 8,167 | 0.65% | N/A | |
| Independent | Skip Galan | 7,474 | 0.59% | N/A | |
| Reform | William McShan | 5,879 | 0.46% | N/A | |
| Independent | Bob Lang | 5,734 | 0.45% | N/A | |
| Independent | Milton Gordon | 4,810 | 0.38% | N/A | |
| Independent | Tommy LaFargue | 4,043 | 0.32% | N/A | |
| Independent | Sam Melton | 3,780 | 0.3% | N/A | |
| Total votes | 1,264,994 | 100% | |||
| Republicanhold | |||||
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