1990 United States Senate election in Tennessee

none related races 1990 United States Senate elections March 2026 September 2025 1990 United States Senate election in Tennessee Tennessee presidential no 1984 United States Senate election in Tennessee 1984 1994 United States Senate special election in Tennessee 1994 (special) November 6, 1990 150x150px Al Gore Senate portrait (cropped).jpg Al Gore Democratic Party (United States) 530,898 67.73% 3x4.svg William R. Hawkins Republican Party (United States) 233,703 29.81% 1990 United States Senate election in Tennessee results map by county.svg 300px County resultsGore: #7996e2 50–60% #6674de 60–70% #584cde 70–80% #3933e5 80–90% U.S. Senator Al Gore Democratic Party (United States) Al Gore Democratic Party (United States) The 1990 United States Senate election in Tennessee was held on November 6, 1990, to select the U.S. Senator from the state of Tennessee. Incumbent Senator Al Gore of the Democratic Party defeated challenger William R. Hawkins of the Republican Party, winning a second term. The election had a turnout rate of just over 20% of registered voters. Gore won in a landslide with over 67% of the vote, improving on his 1984 margin and winning all of the state's counties. Hawkins's campaign was poorly funded and relatively unknown, compared to Gore who was incredibly popular within the state and began the race with over a million dollars in campaign funds. Gore was expected to easily win re-election, and the election cycle was labeled "boring". Issues for the campaign included fiscal responsibility and Gore's liberal voting record. As of 2026, this was the last time the Democrats won a U.S. Senate election in Tennessee, and the last Tennessee U.S. Senate race in which any candidate won every county. Background 1984 United States presidential election in Tennessee In 1984, despite Ronald Reagan's landslide victory in the concurrent presidential election,Raines Howell November 7, 1984 Reagan Wins By a Landslide, Sweeping at Least 48 States; G.O.P. Gains Strength in House https://www.nytimes.com/1984/11/07/politics/reagan-wins-by-a-landslide-sweeping-at-least-48-states-gop-gains.html live https://web.archive.org/web/20170825144938/http://www.nytimes.com/1984/11/07/politics/07REAG.html?pagewanted=1 August 25, 2017 March 12, 2025 The New York Times en-US 0362-4331 Al Gore flipped an open Senate seat held by retiring Republican Howard Baker,November 7, 1984 Senate Dems avoid rout, but GOP still controls https://www.newspapers.com/image/263349084/ September 9, 2025 Journal and Courier A8 Newspapers.com Associated Press defeating Republican Victor Ashe with a little over 60% of the vote. By contrast, Reagan won Tennessee in the presidential election with 58% of the vote to 42% for Democratic candidate Walter Mondale.Ladd Thomas E. May 1, 1985 Statistics of the Presidential and Congressional election of November 6, 1984 https://clerk.house.gov/member_info/electionInfo/1984election.pdf April 21, 2025 Clerk of the House of Representatives 54-55 The 1990 election was held as part of the midterm election cycle of Republican President George H. W. Bush's term.Dewar Helen Yang John E. November 6, 1990 The Senate Incumbents Win Control Remains with Democrats https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/politics/1990/11/07/the-senate/88a317b4-abae-4a7c-9a3c-f65fe6b52b54/ March 12, 2025 The Washington Post Historically, the President's party struggles during the midterms.Elving Ron November 13, 2022 The midterms didn't produce a wave. Here's what that's meant historically https://www.npr.org/2022/11/13/1136103595/the-midterms-didnt-produce-a-wave-heres-what-thats-meant-historically April 1, 2025 NPR en Gore was one of several politicians who were seen as likely candidates for the 1992 Democratic presidential nomination up for reelection.Benedetto Richard May 14, 1990 Democrats slow to take aim at Bush https://www.newspapers.com/image/239988627/ September 11, 2025 Argus-Leader 6A Candidates and primaries Al Gore (Democrat), incumbent Senator William R. Hawkins (Republican), conservative author Primary elections were held on August 2, 1990. Just under 25% of Tennessee's 2.5 million registered voters voted in the primary elections. State elections coordinator Will Burns said the turnout rate was "pretty dismal".Myers Hortense August 31, 1990 Tennessee election results now official; no surprises https://www.newspapers.com/image/773655430/ September 9, 2025 The Commercial Appeal A10 Newspapers.com Democratic primary Al Gore, incumbent SenatorHumphrey Tom August 8, 1990 Gore foe vows 'unorthodox campaign' https://www.newspapers.com/image/774959287/ April 21, 2025 The Knoxville News-Sentinel A6 Newspapers.com After winning his first term in a landslide victory, Gore decided to run for a second. He was unopposed in the Democratic primary. Writing for The Commercial Appeal, Terry Keeter credited the lack of competition to the margin of Gore's victory in the 1984 senate election.Keeter Terry August 2, 1990 Three bidding to unseat Gore https://www.newspapers.com/image/773644938/ April 21, 2025 The Commercial Appeal J10 Newspapers.com Gore received almost 480 thousand votes with 54 votes cast for write-in candidates.1990 United States Senate election in Tennessee Democratic Primary Democratic Party (United States) Al Gore (Incumbent) 479,961 99.99% 54 0.01% 480,015 100.00% Republican primary William R. Hawkins, conservative author Ralph H. Brown, retiree with no political experience Patrick K. Hales, unsuccessful candidate for the Tennessee Public Service Commission in 1986 Former Governor Lamar Alexander, who was very popular in the state, was seen as the only person who could successfully oust Gore. However he declined to run in favor of being President of the University of Tennessee. Hawkins ran after being approached by the Tennessee Conservative Union. He felt that Gore was "the most liberal Senator from the south" and did not properly represent the views of Tennesseans.July 29, 1990 Three GOP candidates vie for right to challenge Gore https://www.newspapers.com/image/1003716686/ April 21, 2025 Elizabethton Star 2A Newspapers.com He described similarities between the voting records of Gore and his father, Albert Gore Sr.,Banks Robert July 26, 1990 GOP Senate hopeful labels Gore a 'Liberal' https://www.newspapers.com/image/594615671 June 3, 2025 Kingsport Times-News 3B Newspapers.com noting that Gore Sr. had lost reelection. Hawkins' primary had a total budget of $3,000. Brown felt that even if he won the nomination he would not be able to defeat Gore in the general election. Despite this he felt it would give him a platform to publicize his beliefs. Hales ran because he felt Gore was "out of touch" with his fellow Tennesseans. After the primary, Hales stated he was advised against running.Rawlins Bill September 9, 1990 Tenn. GOP faces future when leadership gathers https://www.newspapers.com/image/594649464/ https://web.archive.org/web/20210718195518/https://www.deseret.com/1994/10/16/19136960/bush-considered-quayle-a-liability-in-92-book-says July 18, 2021 September 4, 2025 Kingsport Times-News 6B Newspapers.com Associated Press Despite Gore being expected to easily win the general election, the primary was very closely contested. Hawkins defeated Brown by a very narrow margin, though both received over twenty thousand more votes than Hale. Twelve Years Later, Alexander would win Gore's seat in 2002 1990 United States Senate election in Tennessee Republican Primary Republican Party (United States) William R. Hawkins 54,317 38.86% Republican Party (United States) Ralph Brown 53,873 38.54% Republican Party (United States) Patrick K. Hales 31,515 22.55% 70 0.05% 139,775 100.00% General election Hawkins's campaign was poorly funded;Wade Paula November 4, 1990 Gore in Memphis pulpits, on TV for finale https://www.newspapers.com/image/773722228/ June 3, 2025 The Commercial Appeal B6 Newspapers.comNovember 7, 1990 McWherter, Gore coast to victories https://www.newspapers.com/image/963927131/ April 21, 2025 Bristol Herald Courier 1A, 8A Newspapers.com he only had $3,000 to fund his primary run, while Gore had begun the campaign with around $1,000,000. Two weeks before election day Hawkins had raised $12,000 to Gore's $2,000,000.October 29, 1990 Even GOP activists don't know Senate nominee https://www.newspapers.com/image/594651122/ April 27, 2025 Kingsport Times-News 2A Newspapers.com Hawkins' campaign ended with zero cash on hand while Gore had just over $700,000 left.1990 Election United States Senate – Tennessee https://www.fec.gov/data/elections/senate/TN/1990/ May 23, 2025 Federal Election Commission en Hawkins stated that he wanted to run the most "issue-orientated campaign Tennessee has ever seen." He criticized Gore's liberal views, including his stance on the death penalty and his support for the Civil Rights Act of 1990. Despite Gore being more pro-military than most Democrats, Hawkins criticized him for being "soft on defense".Daughtrey Larry August 19, 1990 One way to get rid of the mayor https://www.newspapers.com/image/113155891/? June 4, 2025 The Tennessean 1G Newspapers.com Hawkins noted that the federal deficit had increased under policy's that Gore had voted for. He stated that if elected he would work to cut taxes and reduce government spending. The staff of The Jackson Sun characterized Tennessee's election cycle as boring, noting the likelihood of Gore and incumbent Governor Ned McWherter being reelected, writing, "the gubernatorial and senatorial races are a yawn".Reed Mary S. November 4, 1990 State races drawn yawn from voters https://www.newspapers.com/image/283809298/ April 22, 2025 The Jackson Sun 1A, 3A Republican Representative Don Sundquist felt that the Hawkins was a weak candidate and that Republicans would likely have a better chance of taking the seat in the 1996 election.Brosnan James W. November 4, 1990 An easy election ride doesn't make Sundquist feel easy about future https://www.newspapers.com/image/773722263/ May 26, 2025 The Commercial Appeal B11, B13 Newspapers.com On October 29, 1990, roughly two weeks before election day, Hawkins admitted that his campaign "failed to generate excitement" and acknowledged the relative obscurity of his campaign even within Republican groups. However, the staff of The Commercial Appeal noted that Gore would have some difficulty with his bid due to the conservative lean of Tennessee and his liberal voting record.November 6, 1990 Don't give up / Voters can find a few good contests https://www.newspapers.com/image/773723173/ May 20, 2025 The Commercial Appeal A10 Gore was unable to make in person campaign visits for much of the race due to his role in Congress. The campaign ran a single sixty second television advertisement. In the final few days of the campaign, Gore visited several locations in Memphis, Tennessee and ran a half hour long television special in all major markets throughout the state. Gore's press secretary said the special cost around $20,000-$30,000 and was produced by the firm Squier-Eskew-Knapp advertising firm. On the contrary, Hawkins canceled his planned statewide press conferences and was unable to air radio ads he had recorded due to budgetary constraints. Hawkins had planned to host a fundraising dinner, however he had to cancel the dinner after the organizer of the event died. Results The election was held on November 6, 1990.Espo David November 7, 1990 Demos win Texas, Florida, four other Governships; Helms wins https://www.newspapers.com/image/344952161/ April 21, 2025 The Times and Democrat A1, A4 Newspapers.com Gore, like most incumbents in the 1990 United States Senate elections, was reelected to another term. He won in a landslide,Komarow Steve November 7, 1990 Helms triumphs over Gnatt in N.C. Senate race https://www.newspapers.com/image/112819132/ May 20, 2025 The Tennessean 11A Associated Press receiving over 67 percent of the vote,Liep Dave 1990 Senatorial General Election Results – Tennessee http://uselectionatlas.org/RESULTS/state.php?year=1990&fips=47&off=3&class=2&elect=0&f=1 April 21, 2025 Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections an improvement on his previous margin of victory.Thomas Richard C. June 1985 Federal Elections 84 Election Results for U.S. President, U.S. Senate and the U.S. House of Representatives https://www.fec.gov/resources/cms-content/documents/federalelections84.pdf May 24, 2025 Federal Election Commission 23 Independent candidates Charles Gordon Vick and Bill Jacox both received around 1% of the vote each. A total of 109 votes were cast for write-in candidates. The election had a turnout rate of slightly over 20% of registered voters casting ballots, a similar level to the concurrent gubernatorial election.Leip Dave 1990 Gubernatorial General Election Results – Tennessee https://uselectionatlas.org/RESULTS/state.php?fips=47&year=1990&f=0&off=5&elect=0 May 26, 2025 Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections Low voter turnout was projected due to the lack of major opposition in the Senate and Gubernatorial elections. However, the turnout rate was higher than expected.Weston Alan November 7, 1990 McWherter, Gore win re-election https://www.newspapers.com/image/594767565/ September 9, 2025 Kingsport Times-News A1–A2 Newspapers.com Gore won all 95 of the state's counties. His best performance was in Trousdale County, where he won 88 percent of the vote to Hawkins' 10 percent. Hawkins' best performance was in Monroe County where he won around 40 percent of the vote to Gore's 57 percent. Gore over performed McWherter's margin in the gubernatorial race by around seven percent, although he received a lower number of votes. Hawkins under performed Republican gubernatorial candidate Dwight Henry. 1990 United States Senate election in TennesseeStatistics of the Congressional Election of November 6, 1990 https://clerk.house.gov/member_info/electioninfo/1990election.pdf Clerk of the United States House of Representatives April 29, 1991 PDF Democratic Party (United States) Al Gore (incumbent) 530,898 67.73% Republican Party (United States) William R. Hawkins 233,703 29.81% Independent (United States) Bill Jacox 11,172 1.43% Independent (United States) Charles Gordon Vick 7,995 1.02% 109 0.01% 783,877 100.00% Democratic Party (United States) By county County1990 Election Results for Tennessee -- RightDataUSA.com https://rightdatausa.com/election_results?y=1990&t=S2&r=N&s=TN&d=all&WhichMap=vs 2026-02-10 rightdatausa.com Albert Gore, Jr.Democratic William HawkinsRepublican OthersIndependent Totalvotes % # % # % # Anderson 69.1% 9,542 29.1% 4,018 1.8% 241 13,801 Bedford 77.1% 2,259 21.2% 621 1.7% 50 2,930 Benton 76.6% 1,735 19.5% 441 3.9% 88 2,264 Bledsoe 61.5% 1,229 36.8% 734 1.8% 34 1,997 Blount 59.8% 7,563 38.0% 4,803 2.2% 278 12,644 Bradley 56.8% 4,942 40.6% 3,533 2.6% 225 8,700 Campbell 72.8% 3,527 25.9% 1,253 1.3% 65 4,845 Cannon 73.5% 992 23.4% 316 3.1% 41 1,349 Carroll 75.3% 3,306 22.7% 998 1.9% 85 4,389 Carter 61.0% 3,431 36.3% 2,042 2.7% 148 5,621 Cheatham 71.1% 1,818 26.3% 672 2.7% 67 2,557 Chester 65.2% 1,468 33.7% 758 1.2% 25 2,251 Claiborne 71.6% 2,486 27.0% 938 1.4% 49 3,473 Clay 75.2% 711 23.2% 219 1.6% 15 945 Cocke 66.3% 1,996 30.4% 914 3.3% 99 3,009 Coffee 64.9% 3,994 32.7% 2,013 2.4% 149 6,156 Crockett 69.7% 1,361 27.4% 535 2.9% 56 1,952 Cumberland 57.6% 3,680 39.3% 2,513 3.1% 197 6,390 Davidson 72.0% 54,267 25.2% 19,008 2.7% 2,054 75,329 Decatur 69.0% 1,200 29.3% 509 1.6% 29 1,738 DeKalb 74.1% 1,342 23.2% 421 2.7% 49 1,812 Dickson 75.5% 3,740 22.8% 1,127 1.7% 86 4,953 Dyer 69.3% 3,536 26.9% 1,374 3.8% 189 5,099 Fayette 65.2% 2,378 31.2% 1,137 3.6% 130 3,645 Fentress 72.3% 1,446 26.0% 519 1.8% 34 1,999 Franklin 75.4% 3,971 23.0% 1,210 1.7% 88 5,269 Gibson 79.1% 6,972 19.0% 1,671 1.9% 167 8,810 Giles 79.6% 2,558 18.9% 608 1.5% 46 3,212 Grainger 58.7% 936 39.2% 625 2.1% 34 1,595 Greene 59.4% 3,511 38.6% 2,283 2.0% 116 5,910 Grundy 77.4% 1,251 21.3% 344 1.3% 21 1,616 Hamblen 61.7% 4,792 36.6% 2,842 1.8% 137 7,771 Hamilton 56.4% 28,928 40.3% 20,671 3.3% 1,714 51,313 Hancock 70.8% 651 28.3% 260 1.0% 9 920 Hardeman 77.0% 3,873 20.6% 1,034 2.4% 120 5,027 Hardin 69.8% 3,343 28.7% 1,374 1.5% 71 4,788 Hawkins 68.1% 4,943 30.8% 2,239 1.1% 81 7,263 Haywood 72.8% 1,685 24.6% 568 2.6% 60 2,313 Henderson 61.1% 1,857 37.5% 1,141 1.4% 42 3,040 Henry 74.3% 2,756 23.4% 868 2.3% 86 3,710 Hickman 79.3% 1,741 19.2% 421 1.5% 33 2,195 Houston 82.2% 1,017 15.0% 185 2.8% 35 1,237 Humphreys 78.2% 1,605 19.1% 393 2.7% 55 2,053 Jackson 83.2% 1,243 15.5% 231 1.3% 20 1,494 Jefferson 60.3% 2,454 37.0% 1,504 2.7% 109 4,067 Johnson 63.3% 1,027 34.6% 561 2.1% 34 1,622 Knox 65.4% 37,254 32.8% 18,675 1.8% 1,018 56,947 Lake 78.5% 486 18.3% 113 3.2% 20 619 Lauderdale 72.7% 1,748 24.7% 593 2.7% 64 2,405 Lawrence 73.0% 5,198 26.2% 1,862 0.8% 58 7,118 Lewis 79.9% 1,704 18.9% 404 1.1% 24 2,132 Lincoln 75.9% 2,743 22.3% 807 1.7% 62 3,612 Loudon 58.2% 2,479 38.9% 1,655 2.9% 125 4,259 Macon 71.2% 1,030 27.1% 392 1.7% 24 1,446 Madison 73.3% 13,500 24.4% 4,499 2.2% 413 18,412 Marion 71.0% 3,743 26.5% 1,399 2.5% 131 5,273 Marshall 70.4% 1,629 26.9% 623 2.6% 61 2,313 Maury 68.2% 5,289 30.1% 2,332 1.7% 133 7,754 McMinn 62.8% 5,442 35.4% 3,065 1.8% 156 8,663 McNairy 68.1% 3,622 31.1% 1,654 0.9% 46 5,322 Meigs 61.0% 900 37.7% 556 1.4% 20 1,476 Monroe 57.8% 2,715 40.9% 1,922 1.3% 60 4,697 Montgomery 78.8% 11,567 19.5% 2,864 1.7% 255 14,686 Moore 73.7% 465 24.7% 156 1.6% 10 631 Morgan 74.4% 1,457 23.3% 457 2.3% 45 1,959 Obion 76.9% 3,210 20.5% 858 2.6% 108 4,176 Overton 83.2% 1,761 15.0% 317 1.8% 39 2,117 Perry 79.0% 762 20.1% 194 0.9% 9 965 Pickett 65.1% 506 33.7% 262 1.2% 9 777 Polk 69.7% 1,485 28.9% 615 1.4% 30 2,130 Putnam 75.1% 6,663 22.9% 2,032 2.0% 180 8,875 Rhea 60.8% 3,124 38.0% 1,954 1.2% 60 5,138 Roane 69.7% 7,583 28.2% 3,069 2.1% 230 10,882 Robertson 78.0% 3,602 19.1% 883 2.9% 134 4,619 Rutherford 70.6% 10,184 26.8% 3,860 2.6% 371 14,415 Scott 67.0% 1,021 30.5% 465 2.4% 37 1,523 Sequatchie 64.0% 996 34.6% 538 1.4% 22 1,556 Sevier 58.6% 3,278 38.6% 2,158 2.8% 158 5,594 Shelby 64.3% 98,841 32.4% 49,860 3.3% 5,122 153,823 Smith 84.0% 1,996 14.4% 341 1.6% 39 2,376 Stewart 76.2% 1,247 20.6% 337 3.2% 53 1,637 Sullivan 65.3% 14,871 32.5% 7,398 2.3% 521 22,790 Sumner 73.2% 10,376 25.0% 3,539 1.9% 264 14,179 Tipton 59.1% 2,375 36.4% 1,465 4.5% 181 4,021 Trousdale 88.7% 1,867 10.3% 216 1.0% 21 2,104 Unicoi 70.0% 1,395 28.5% 567 1.5% 30 1,992 Union 61.5% 1,054 36.7% 629 1.7% 30 1,713 Van Buren 84.7% 728 14.4% 124 0.9% 8 860 Warren 81.8% 5,837 15.6% 1,117 2.6% 186 7,140 Washington 71.4% 10,730 26.4% 3,973 2.2% 334 15,037 Wayne 57.7% 896 40.7% 632 1.5% 24 1,552 Weakley 78.0% 4,290 19.5% 1,072 2.5% 136 5,498 White 77.4% 1,818 19.5% 459 3.1% 72 2,349 Williamson 61.2% 8,664 36.6% 5,189 2.2% 314 14,167 Wilson 77.6% 11,704 20.6% 3,103 1.8% 268 15,075 Total 67.7% 530,898 29.8% 233,703 2.5% 19,276 783,877 Aftermath On January 3, 1991, Gore was sworn in to the 102nd United States Congress by then–Vice President Dan Quayle alongside his fellow Senators-elect.https://www.c-span.org/program/senate-highlight/swearing-in-of-senate-members/10810 Swearing-In of Senate Members January 3, 1991 Video C-SPAN 5:27 After being elected Vice President in the 1992 presidential election, Gore resigned from his Senate seat on January 2, 1993. Harlan Mathews was appointed to replace him by Governor Ned McWherter.December 29, 1992 Gore's Senate replacement named https://www.deseret.com/1992/12/29/19023938/gore-s-senate-replacement-named/ May 19, 2025 Deseret News en In the 1994 special election for the seat, the remainder of Gore's term was won by Republican Fred Thompson who defeated Democratic Representative Jim Cooper for Tennessee's 4th congressional district.Brosnan James W. September 18, 2007 What's the truck got to do with it? https://www.politico.com/story/2007/09/whats-the-truck-got-to-do-with-it-005867 May 19, 2025 Politico en As of the 2024 election cycle, this was the last time the Democrats won a Senate election in Tennessee.Taylor Sarah Grace November 6, 2024 Marsha Blackburn tops Gloria Johnson, wins re-election https://nashvillebanner.com/2024/11/05/marsha-blackburn-re-elected-senate-seat/ April 16, 2025 Nashville Banner en-US It is the most recent Senate election in Tennessee in which several counties, including Knox County and Hamilton County, voted for the Democratic candidate.Liep Dave Senatorial General Election Map Comparison – Tennessee https://uselectionatlas.org/RESULTS/comparemaps.php?year=2024&fips=47&f=0&off=3&elect=0&class=1 April 16, 2025 Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections Beginning with the 1994 elections the Democratic party struggled in the state.Friedman Adam September 11, 2024 Jim Sasser, Tennessee's last Democratic U.S. senator, dies at 87 • Tennessee Lookout https://tennesseelookout.com/2024/09/11/jim-sasser-tennessees-last-democratic-u-s-senator-dies-at-87/ April 16, 2025 Tennessee Lookout en-US References Category:1990 Tennessee elections Tennessee 1990 Category:Al Gore