Delaware is going to the polls this November in a special election to fill the Senate seat vacated by Vice President Joe Biden in 2008.
Biden won his Senate seat in 1972, defeating sitting Republican senator Caleb Boggs, who was running for a third term. Biden served six full terms as Senator for Delaware, until 2008. In 2008, he simultaneously ran for a seventh term as Senator and for Vice President. He won both races, and resigned from the Senate shortly after.
His Senate seat was filled by his former chief of staff, Ted Kaufman. Kaufman never intended to run in the 2010 special election to fill the remaining four years of the Senate term.
Delaware’s other Senate seat was held by Republicans continuously from the 1946 election until the 2000 election. In 2000, five-term Senator Bill Roth (R) was defeated by Tom Carper (D), who was re-elected in 2006.
With sitting Senator Ted Kaufman not running, Delaware’ special election this year is an open race. The Democratic primary was won unopposed by Chris Coons, New Castle County Executive.
The Republican nomination was originally assumed to go to Mike Castle, who has held Delaware’s only House of Representatives seat since 1992, and had previously served as Governor of Delaware. Castle was opposed in the primary by Christine O’Donnell, who ran as the Republican candidate for the Senate in 2008, and was beaten badly by Joe Biden. For most of the primary campaign, Castle was solidly in front.
In late August, sitting Senator Lisa Murkowski lost the Republican Senate primary in Alaska to Joe Miller, a more conservative candidate who ran an anti-establishment campaign with the support of former Governor Sarah Palin and tea party activists. This victory saw tea party activists push resources into Delaware, where O’Donnell was close to tea party positions, while Castle has been a moderate Republican with deep establishment connections.
In yesterday’s primary, O’Donnell achieved an upset win, with 53% of the vote. It was widely predicted that Castle was likely to win a general election, flipping a Senate seat from Democrat to Republican in a very liberal state. While O’Donnell certainly has a chance of victory, her chances are much slimmer, and make Democratic candidate Coons the front-runner in the race.
It was selfish of Joe Biden to run for two offices at the same election. And it was equally selfish to fill the seat with a placeholder to clear the way for his son to run.
And then for Beau Biden not to run for fear of losing to Castle really left the Democrats in Delaware high and dry.
But all these own goals are nothing compared to the one the Republican primary voters have just scored; snatching certain defeat from the jaws of certain victory.
The Democrats will retain Delaware, despite themselves.
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