The 2004 United States Senate election in Ohio took place on November 2, 2004. It was concurrent with elections to the United States House of Representatives and the presidential election. Incumbent Republican U.S. Senator George Voinovich won re-election to a second term with the highest raw vote total in Ohio history. This remains the last Ohio statewide election to date in which a candidate won every county in the state. This was the first election since 1950 that an incumbent Republican Senator from Ohio was re-elected or won re-election for this seat.
George Voinovich faced only token opposition from John Mitchel, a former Air Force lieutenant colonel, a former Reform Party candidate for governor in 1998, an Independent candidate for U.S. House in 2000 and as a Republican in 2002, both times against congressman David Hobson.[1]
The early story of the campaign surrounded speculation of whether Jerry Springer would enter the race.[4] Springer, a former mayor of Cincinnati, had previously considered a challenge to the state's other Senator Mike DeWine in 2000, but ultimately passed on it.[5] Among the steps Springer took, included filing papers to run[6] traveling across the state to meet voters,[7] and airing a nationwide 30 minute infomercial for the purpose of fundraising.[8] The infomercial would not be seen in Ohio due to equal time laws. Ultimately, Springer declined a return to public office, citing his inability to distance himself from his infamous talk show's reputation.[9] He also cited his show's contract as playing a role.[10] In all, Springer spent a little over $1 million of his own money on his exploratory campaign.[11]
Had he run, Springer would have faced obstacles, as polling showed that as much as 71% of voters polled held an unfavorable view of him.[12] That same poll also showed that in a prospective contest, Voinovich lead with 77% of the vote to Springer's 16%.[13] After his brief exploration, Springer hinted that in 2006, he would be interested in the open governorship and declined to rule out a Senate bid that year.[14][10] Ultimately, he would pursue neither bid.
After Springer declined to enter, Fingerhut was seen as the favorite to win the nomination.[9] He only faced token opposition from Norbert Dennerll, a former City Councilman who served in the late 50's and early 60's.[1]
A popular U.S. Senator, Voinovich was the heavy favorite to win the election virtually from the start.[13] He had over $9 million in the bank, while his opponent barely had $1.5 million.[16] Fingerhut tried to draw attention to his candidacy by walking over 300 miles across the state and meeting with voters.[17] However, he still faced long odds, with many Democratic officials ignoring his campaign and voters not believing in his chances.[18][19]
Voinovich's biggest advantage was getting support from the most Democratic-leaning county in the state, Cuyahoga County, Ohio. Kerry carried it with almost 67% of the vote, by far his best performance in the state in 2004. It is the home of Cleveland and it is also most populous county in the state. Voinovich was a former mayor of Cleveland. In addition, he catered to Cleveland's large Jewish population by visiting Israel six times as a first-term U.S. Senator. He also consistently voted for aid to Israel through foreign appropriations bills. He's supported resolutions reaffirming Israel's right to self-defense and condemned Palestinian terrorist attacks.[20] In addition, Fingerhut's home base was in the Cleveland area, and therefore he had to cut in through the incumbent's home base in order to even make the election close.
In a September University of Cincinnati poll, the incumbent lead 64% to 34%.[21] In an October ABC News poll, Voinovich was winning 60% to 35%. He led across almost all demographic groups Only among Democrats, non-whites, liberals, and those who pick health care as #1 issue favor Fingerhut. The election coincided with the presidential election, where Ohio was a swing state. 27% of Voinovich's supporters preferred U.S. Senator John Kerry for president.[22]
Voinovich won 17 of 18 congressional districts, including 6 that have Democratic congressman and 5 that voted for John Kerry in the presidential race.[26]
^ abWhittington, Lauren W. (August 8, 2003). "The Other Candidate". Roll Call. Archived from the original on January 20, 2021. Retrieved August 23, 2023.
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