The 2008 United States Senate election in Louisiana was held on November 4, 2008. This was the first time since the 1970s that Louisiana used primaries for federal races. Incumbent

Democratic Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (United States) (D) **Democratic ...

Senator Mary Landrieu won reelection to a third term, defeating Republican (and former Democrat)

John Kennedy John Fitzgerald Kennedy (May 29, 1917 – November 22, 1963), often referred to by his initials JFK and the nickname Jack, was an American politician who served as the 35th president of the United States from 1961 until his assassination i ...

. Despite being forecast as one of the most vulnerable Senate Democrats during 2008, Landrieu won a comfortable victory of 6.4 percentage points. Landrieu had received praise and wide publicity for her advocacy after

Hurricane Katrina Hurricane Katrina was a destructive Category 5 Atlantic hurricane that caused over 1,800 fatalities and $125 billion in damage in late August 2005, especially in the city of New Orleans and the surrounding areas. It was at the time the cost ...

, particularly during hearings regarding FEMA's response to the disaster. Kennedy had switched parties in 2007, just one year before the election, garnering allegations of being a political opportunist. Kennedy won the state's other U.S. Senate seat in

2016 File:2016 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Bombed-out buildings in Ankara following the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt; the impeachment trial of Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff; Damaged houses during the 2016 Nagorno-Karabakh ...

. , this was the last time that the Democrats won a U.S. Senate election in Louisiana.

Background

Landrieu's increased vulnerability was supposed to be the result of a significant drop in the state's African-American population after

, especially in Landrieu's home city of New Orleans. Louisiana also elected a Republican senator in 2004 and President Bush carried the state twice, in 2004 United States presidential election in Louisiana, 2004 with 58 percent of the vote. Also, Republican Congressman Bobby Jindal won the 2007 Louisiana gubernatorial election, 2007 gubernatorial election with 54 percent of the vote. After a continued backslide in support for the Democrats, Landrieu lost her seat by 12 points in 2014 United States Senate election in Louisiana, 2014 to Bill Cassidy. Kennedy was later elected in the other Senate seat in

Major candidates

Democratic

* Mary Landrieu, incumbent U.S. Senator

Republican

* John Neely Kennedy, State Treasurer and Democratic candidate for the U.S. Senate in 2004 United States Senate election in Louisiana, 2004

General election

Predictions

Polling

Results

Though she was considered one of the most vulnerable incumbent senators in 2008, Landrieu won reelection by a margin of 121,121 votes and 6.39%, over-performing Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama in the state by more than 12 percentage points.

References

External links

Elections Division
from the ''Louisiana Secretary of State''
U.S. Congress candidates for Louisiana
at Project Vote Smart
Louisiana U.S. Senate
from Congressional Quarterly, CQ Politics
Louisiana U.S. Senate
from ''OurCampaigns.com''
Campaign contributions
from OpenSecrets {{2008 United States elections United States Senate elections in Louisiana, 2008 2008 United States Senate elections, Louisiana 2008 Louisiana elections, United States Senate