1996 United States Senate election in Alaska

none March 2026 September 2023 1996 United States Senate election in Alaska Alaska presidential no 1990 United States Senate election in Alaska 1990 2002 United States Senate election in Alaska 2002 November 5, 1996 File:Appropriations Chair, Ted Stevens, in 1997 (cropped. 3x4).jpg 150x150px Ted Stevens Republican Party (United States) 177,893 76.71% 3x4.svg Jed Whittaker Green Party (United States) 29,037 12.52% File:Theresa Obermeyer (cropped).jpg Theresa Obermeyer Democratic Party (United States) 23,977 10.34% 1996 United States Senate election in Alaska by State House District.svg 325px Results by state house districtStevens: #e27f7f 50–60% #d75d5d 60–70% #d72f30 70–80% #c21b18 80–90% U.S. Senator Ted Stevens Republican Party (United States) Ted Stevens Republican Party (United States) The 1996 United States Senate election in Alaska was held on November 5, 1996. Incumbent Republican United States Senator Ted Stevens ran for re-election to a sixth term (a fifth full term) in the United States Senate. Stevens faced off against Democratic nominee Theresa Obermeyer, a former member of the Anchorage School Board,Kirtley Jane http://www.ajr.org/Article.asp?id=3017 Gag Her with an Injunction | American Journalism Review Ajr.org September 16, 2013 May 10, 2006 https://web.archive.org/web/20060510222041/http://ajr.org/article.asp?id=3017 dead and Green Party nominee Jed Whittaker, a commercial fisherman. Stevens won in a landslide. Open primary Candidates Democratic Michael Beasley, perennial candidate Henry J. Blake Jr. Lawrence Freiberger, former congressional candidate Robert Alan Gigler Theresa Obermeyer, former Anchorage School Board member Joseph A. Sonneman, perennial candidate Frank Vondersaar, perennial candidate Republican Ted Stevens, incumbent United States Senator since 1968 David Cuddy, former Alaska State Representative Charles E. McKee Green Jed Whittaker, commercial fisherman, Republican candidate in 1992 Results Open primary resultshttps://www.elections.alaska.gov/results/96PRIM96GENR/psummary.txt Official State of Alaska - Primary : August 27, 1996 Elections.alaska.gov September 16, 2013 Ted Stevens (incumbent) Republican Party (United States) 71,043 58.87% Dave W. Cuddy Republican Party (United States) 32,994 27.34% Theresa Obermeyer Democratic Party (United States) 4,072 3.37% Jed Whittaker Green Party (United States) 3,751 3.11% Joseph A. Sonneman Democratic Party (United States) 2,643 2.19% Michael Beasley Democratic Party (United States) 1,968 1.63% Henry J. Blake Jr. Democratic Party (United States) 1,157 0.96% Lawrence Freiberger Democratic Party (United States) 921 0.76% Charles E. McKee Republican Party (United States) 842 0.70% Frank Vondersaar Democratic Party (United States) 655 0.54% Robert Alan Gigler Democratic Party (United States) 631 0.52% 138,492 100.00% General election Campaign The race drew national attention for Obermeyer's erratic behavior: she blamed Stevens for her husband's failure to pass the bar exam twenty-one times, and contended that Stevens had passed the bar by fraud. She "trailed" him to campaign events, frequently wearing a prisoner's outfit and once dragging a ball and chain behind her. In June and July 1996, she served a sentence of 30 days in prison for disorderly conduct because of her role in a disturbance at a federal courthouse, while on probation for a 1994 conviction of disorderly conduct for instigating another disturbance at the same courthouse.Aliens From Outer Space and Other Election Tales https://www.nytimes.com/1996/11/07/us/aliens-from-outer-space-and-other-election-tales.html The New York Times November 7, 1996 June 4, 2014Phillips Natalie Obermeyer Went on a Fast Track: U.S. Marshal Denies Special handling Anchorage Daily News July 4, 1996 Obermeyer attracted public attention, and possibly sympathy, during the campaign when, after serving seven days of her sentence in Alaska state prison, she was moved in the middle of the night to a Portland, Oregon county jail, and after a week there, she was moved to a federal prison in Dublin, California; her husband and attorney each complained about the moves, and a Federal prison official acknowledged that they were unusual. During the televised debate before the general election, after discussing diseases of the brain, Stevens earnestly said to his opponent, "I think you need help, Mrs. Obermeyer," a response described fourteen years later in The Anchorage Daily News as one that "has become, it is safe to say, legendary."Alaska 1996 US Senate campaign debate - Ted Stevens and Theresa Obermeyer (at 4:00) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MaIsLeqfwM4 https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211215/MaIsLeqfwM4 2021-12-15 live Youtube August 10, 2010 May 18, 2020Alaska Beat Video: 1996 debate, Stevens v. Obermeyer https://www.adn.com/ted-stevens-1923-2010/article/video-1996-debate-stevens-v-obermeyer-2/2010/08/12/ May 18, 2020 Anchorage Daily News August 12, 2010 The televised primary election debates on August 21, 1996, also drew national attention for the unusual cast of characters seeking to oppose Stevens, particularly the seven candidates on the Democratic side. A column on the national PoliticsNow website, headlined "Alaska Displays the Scary Side of Democracy," described the debate as "what would happen if the Addams Family appeared on Meet the Press," leading to nationwide sales by public TV station KAKM of a record number of copies of the debate video.Demer Lisa KAKM Debate Video Becoming Cult Classic Anchorage Daily News September 7, 1996 Anchorage Daily News columnist Mike Doogan described the debate as "what would happen if the folks from Jabba the Hutt's headquarters dropped by the Mad Hatter's tea party."Doogan Mike Democratic U.S. Senate Field is Crowded with Strange Rangers Anchorage Daily News August 23, 1996 thumb|Remnant of Whittaker's campaign bumper sticker, photographed on a light pole on South Cushman Street in Fairbanks in 2014. The bumper sticker read "Tired of Ted? Vote for Jed!". Results In the general election, Stevens was re-elected in an overwhelming landslide, and Whittaker finished ahead of Obermeyer. 1996 United States Senate election in Alaskahttp://clerk.house.gov/member_info/electionInfo/1996election.pdf Statistics of the Presidential and Congressional Election of November 5, 1996 Clerk.house.gov September 16, 2013 Republican Party (United States) Ted Stevens (incumbent) 177,893 76.71% +10.48% Green Party (United States) Jed Whittaker 29,037 12.52% Democratic Party (United States) Theresa Obermeyer 23,977 10.34% −21.85% Write-ins 1,009 0.44% 148,856 64.19% +30.15% 231,916 Republican Party (United States) Democratic Party (United States) See also 1996 United States Senate elections References Category:1996 Alaska elections Alaska 1996 Category:Ted Stevens