1992 United States Senate election in California

The 1992 United States Senate election in California took place on November 3, 1992, at the same time as the special election to the United States Senate in California. Incumbent Democrat Alan Cranston decided to retire. Democrat Barbara Boxer won the open seat. This election was noted as both of California's Senators were elected for the first time. This is not a unique occurrence; it would happen again in Tennessee in 1994, Kansas in 1996, and Georgia in 2020-21. Fellow Democrat Dianne Feinstein, California's senior senator, won the special election and was inaugurated in November 1992.

1992 United States Senate election in California

November 3, 1992 (1992-11-03)
 
Nominee Barbara Boxer Bruce Herschensohn
Party Democratic Republican
Popular vote 5,173,467 4,644,182
Percentage 47.9% 43.0%

County Results
Boxer:      40-50%      50–60%      60–70%
Herchensohn:      40–50%      50–60%      60–70%

U.S. senator before election

Alan Cranston
Democratic

Elected U.S. Senator

Barbara Boxer
Democratic

Democratic primary

Candidates

Results

In the primary election in June, Boxer defeated McCarthy and Levine with 43.6% of the vote.[1]

1992 Democratic Senate primary[2]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Barbara Boxer 1,339,126 43.58%
Democratic Leo T. McCarthy 943,229 30.70%
Democratic Mel Levine 667,359 21.72%
Democratic Charles Greene 122,954 4.00%
Total votes 3,072,668 100.00%

Republican primary

Candidates

Results

1992 Republican Senate primary[3]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Bruce Herschensohn 956,146 38.80%
Republican Tom Campbell 859,970 34.90%
Republican Sonny Bono 417,848 16.96%
Republican Isaac Park Yonker 94,623 3.84%
Republican Alexander Swift Justice 60,104 2.44%
Republican John W. Spring 54,941 2.23%
Republican John M. Brown 20,810 0.84%
Total votes 2,464,442 100.00%

Peace and Freedom primary

Candidates

  • Genevieve Torres,
  • Shirley Lee

Results

1992 Peace and Freedom Senate primary[4]
Party Candidate Votes %
Peace and Freedom Genevieve Torres 5,492 60.34%
Peace and Freedom Shirley Lee 3,610 39.66%
Total votes 9,102 100.00%

General election

Campaign

The general election between Boxer and Herschensohn was very close. At the eleventh hour, controversy emerged that the Republican nominee attended a strip club, which some Republican operatives later blamed for Herschensohn's loss.[5]

Four days before Election Day polls showed Herschensohn had narrowed a double digit deficit, trailing by 3 points. Political operative Bob Mulholland disrupted a campaign appearance with a large poster advertising a strip club shouting "Should the voters of California elect someone who frequently travels the strip joints of Hollywood?" Herschensohn admitted he had visited a strip club once, with his girlfriend and another couple. With press coverage of the story, Herschensohn spent the waning days of the campaign denying related allegations. When the votes were cast and counted, Boxer won the election by five points.[6] Although Republicans have blamed the defeat on the underhanded tactics of the Boxer campaign, evidence of the connection between Mulholland's outburst and the campaign never surfaced.[7][8][9]

Results

The election was very close. Boxer was declared the winner by the Associated Press at 1:22 A.M. Pacific Coast Time.

1992 U.S. Senate election in California
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Barbara Boxer 5,173,467 47.90%
Republican Bruce Herschensohn 4,644,182 43.00%
American Independent Jerome N. McCready 373,051 3.45%
Peace and Freedom Genevieve Torres 372,817 3.45%
Libertarian June R. Genis 235,919 2.18%
Write-in Joel Britton 110 0.00%
Write-in John Cortese 101 0.00%
Write-in Robert L. Bell 56 0.00%
Total votes 10,799,647 100.00
Democratic hold

By county

Final results from the Secretary of State of California.[10]

County Boxer Votes Hersch. Votes McC. Votes Torres Votes Genis Votes W/I V's
San Francisco 76.57% 233,068 18.72% 56,972 1.48% 4,503 1.84% 5,602 1.38% 4,214 0.00% 13
Alameda 66.94% 343,020 25.08% 128,489 3.08% 15,768 2.85% 14,610 2.04% 10,477 0.01% 29
Marin 63.47% 80,902 29.14% 37,150 2.59% 3,299 2.08% 2,656 2.72% 3,464 0.00% 1
Santa Cruz 61.21% 67,927 29.27% 32,482 2.98% 3,309 3.18% 3,525 3.36% 3,726 0.00% 2
San Mateo 59.39% 158,490 32.68% 87,209 2.49% 6,638 2.87% 7,669 2.58% 6,879 0.00% 0
Yolo 58.23% 35,006 33.10% 19,900 3.70% 2,222 2.85% 1,711 2.12% 1,274 0.00% 0
Sonoma 56.76% 108,991 32.65% 62,696 4.05% 7,772 3.69% 7,084 2.85% 5,476 0.00% 7
Mendocino 55.99% 19,818 33.10% 11,718 4.60% 1,627 3.28% 1,160 3.03% 1,074 0.00% 0
Contra Costa 55.17% 203,563 35.76% 131,923 3.65% 13,462 3.06% 11,290 2.36% 8,711 0.00% 3
Santa Clara 54.11% 314,884 35.55% 206,913 3.61% 21,001 3.59% 20,922 3.14% 18,261 0.00% 2
Los Angeles 52.55% 1,410,423 39.60% 1,062,974 2.56% 68,630 3.57% 95,779 1.72% 46,195 0.00% 65
Solano 51.87% 67,007 36.50% 47,148 5.12% 6,615 4.02% 5,188 2.49% 3,217 0.00% 0
Napa 49.63% 25,746 39.81% 20,655 4.32% 2,240 3.55% 1,841 2.69% 1,396 0.00% 0
Sacramento 49.09% 215,853 40.90% 179,844 3.96% 17,425 3.79% 16,684 2.25% 9,911 0.00% 0
Monterey 48.65% 54,400 41.05% 45,903 4.16% 4,648 3.63% 4,058 2.51% 2,801 0.00% 0
Humboldt 48.63% 27,916 43.13% 24,757 3.14% 1,802 3.38% 1,941 1.72% 986 0.00% 0
Lake 46.82% 10,805 40.54% 9,357 6.01% 1,388 3.51% 810 3.12% 720 0.00% 0
Alpine 45.18% 272 43.19% 260 5.81% 35 4.65% 28 1.16% 7 0.00% 0
Santa Barbara 45.11% 70,998 46.25% 72,793 3.49% 5,486 3.46% 5,444 1.70% 2,673 0.00% 0
Stanislaus 45.03% 55,688 45.18% 55,875 4.31% 5,332 3.64% 4,501 1.85% 2,285 0.00% 0
Imperial 44.66% 11,614 43.79% 11,389 3.15% 819 7.07% 1,839 1.33% 347 0.00% 0
San Benito 43.68% 5,415 44.59% 5,527 4.76% 590 4.34% 538 2.63% 326 0.00% 0
Tuolumne 42.81% 9,811 46.24% 10,596 4.86% 1,113 3.87% 886 2.21% 507 0.01% 2
Del Norte 42.36% 3,891 46.69% 4,289 6.00% 551 3.05% 280 1.91% 175 0.00% 0
Mono 42.23% 1,820 47.19% 2,034 4.01% 173 3.83% 165 2.74% 118 0.00% 0
San Diego 42.17% 399,087 47.35% 448,181 4.06% 38,434 3.53% 33,379 2.89% 27,336 0.00% 12
San Joaquin 42.15% 66,484 47.57% 75,032 4.41% 6,963 3.94% 6,213 1.92% 3,036 0.00% 0
S. L. Obispo 41.23% 41,824 49.24% 49,945 4.47% 4,530 2.89% 2,933 2.17% 2,205 0.00% 0
Siskiyou 40.60% 8,115 47.87% 9,568 6.33% 1,266 3.00% 599 2.21% 441 0.00% 0
Plumas 40.48% 4,032 47.47% 4,728 7.13% 710 2.78% 277 2.13% 212 0.01% 1
Amador 40.38% 6,082 48.91% 7,366 5.07% 764 3.23% 486 2.41% 363 0.00% 0
Ventura 39.62% 104,335 50.62% 133,274 3.89% 10,253 3.66% 9,629 2.20% 5,793 0.01% 25
Nevada 39.45% 17,091 49.87% 21,609 5.35% 2,317 2.74% 1,186 2.60% 1,125 0.00% 0
Placer 39.33% 34,905 50.50% 44,813 3.98% 3,532 3.72% 3,297 2.47% 2,193 0.00% 0
Merced 39.21% 17,848 49.12% 22,360 5.35% 2,434 3.47% 1,579 2.85% 1,298 0.00% 0
Sierra 38.69% 705 48.19% 878 7.14% 130 3.02% 55 2.96% 54 0.00% 0
El Dorado 38.66% 24,601 50.86% 32,368 4.68% 2,975 3.33% 2,116 2.48% 1,576 0.00% 0
Calaveras 38.35% 6,402 49.54% 8,269 5.80% 969 3.35% 559 2.96% 494 0.00% 0
Lassen 38.09% 3,761 48.85% 4,823 7.67% 757 3.33% 329 2.06% 203 0.00% 0
Riverside 38.05% 160,630 51.83% 218,778 4.39% 18,512 3.63% 15,323 2.11% 8,891 0.00% 0
Butte 37.41% 31,505 51.47% 43,338 5.11% 4,306 3.28% 2,762 2.73% 2,296 0.00% 0
Fresno 36.93% 78,321 55.59% 117,891 2.16% 4,587 3.78% 8,009 1.53% 3,248 0.00% 3
S. Bernardino 36.90% 164,620 51.81% 231,143 4.74% 21,138 4.38% 19,555 2.14% 9,558 0.02% 100
Mariposa 36.86% 2,989 51.92% 4,211 5.36% 435 3.86% 313 2.00% 162 0.00% 0
Trinity 35.16% 2,261 49.51% 3,184 7.79% 501 4.15% 267 3.39% 218 0.00% 0
Yuba 34.03% 5,638 52.67% 8,726 7.24% 1,199 3.30% 547 2.76% 458 0.00% 0
Colusa 33.57% 1,859 56.19% 3,112 5.00% 277 3.21% 178 2.02% 112 0.00% 0
Orange 33.41% 317,740 57.89% 550,502 3.20% 30,400 3.21% 30,550 2.29% 21,783 0.00% 2
Kings 33.09% 8,151 57.15% 14,079 3.63% 895 4.85% 1,196 1.28% 315 0.00% 0
Modoc 32.64% 1,429 54.07% 2,367 8.18% 358 3.22% 141 1.90% 83 0.00% 0
Madera 31.89% 9,401 59.74% 17,609 3.42% 1,009 3.82% 1,127 1.12% 329 0.00% 0
Inyo 30.98% 2,563 58.59% 4,847 4.96% 410 3.36% 278 2.12% 175 0.00% 0
Sutter 30.83% 7,719 59.04% 14,783 4.86% 1,216 3.23% 809 2.05% 513 0.00% 0
Tehama 30.71% 6,450 56.62% 11,893 6.47% 1,360 3.08% 647 3.12% 655 0.00% 0
Kern 30.30% 53,141 60.97% 106,916 3.58% 6,286 3.54% 6,200 1.61% 2,823 0.00% 0
Tulare 29.24% 25,311 62.21% 53,856 3.54% 3,066 3.78% 3,273 1.23% 1,067 0.00% 0
Shasta 28.39% 18,868 59.44% 39,507 6.15% 4,085 3.78% 2,515 2.24% 1,492 0.00% 0
Glenn 26.27% 2,271 62.16% 5,373 6.12% 529 3.23% 279 2.22% 192 0.00% 0

See also

References

  1. Reinhold, Robert (June 3, 1992). "THE 1992 CAMPAIGN: California; 2 Women Win Nomination In California Senate Races". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved May 18, 2019.
  2. https://www.ourcampaigns.com/RaceDetail.html?RaceID=38072
  3. https://www.ourcampaigns.com/RaceDetail.html?RaceID=38073
  4. https://www.ourcampaigns.com/RaceDetail.html?RaceID=418352
  5. Eu, March Fong (December 12, 1992). "Statement of Vote General Election November 3, 1992" (PDF). p. 14 (24 in PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on July 30, 2008. Retrieved December 11, 2008.
  6. Murphy, Dean E.; Shuit, Douglas P. (October 31, 1992). "U.S. Senate Candidates Crisscross State for Votes Politics: Herschensohn reacts angrily to accusation that he went to strip joint, frequented adult newsstand". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved March 31, 2010. A clearly shaken Herschensohn, who has embraced the GOP "family values" platform, at first refused to comment on the accusations, calling them "a pretty desperate thing." But he later conceded that he once visited the Seventh Veil nude-dance club in Hollywood... The authors were LA Times staff writers.
  7. Steinberg, Arnold (November 17, 2000). "Beware the Trickster: Bob Mulholland oversees the recounting of the ballots in Florida". National Review. Archived from the original on January 4, 2009. Retrieved December 7, 2008. That vintage Mulholland maneuver made it all but impossible for Herschensohn to stay on-message during the campaign's crucial closing days.
  8. Fund, John (December 5, 2005). "Arnold's 'Harriet Miers Moment' - Has Gov. Schwarzenegger jumped the shark?". John Fund on the Trail - WSJ.com. The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved December 7, 2008.
  9. Salladay, Robert (December 7, 2005). "Governor Faces Revolt in GOP". Los Angeles Times. p. A-1. Retrieved December 9, 2008. Bob Mulholland, publicly accused Republican U.S. Senate candidate Bruce Herschensohn of visiting a Sunset Boulevard strip club. Herschensohn had been running as the traditional-values candidate.
    Amid the controversy, Herschensohn lost the Senate race to Democrat Barbara Boxer, and the GOP was outraged at what it called a "smear campaign." Kennedy suspended Mulholland, but he soon returned to the party.
  10. "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on July 30, 2008. Retrieved March 12, 2009.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
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