| Election Name: | 2010 United States Senate election in Alabama |
| Country: | Alabama |
| Type: | presidential |
| Ongoing: | Yes |
| Previous Election: | 2004 United States Senate election in Alabama |
| Previous Year: | 2004 |
| Next Election: | 2016 United States Senate election in Alabama |
| Next Year: | 2016 |
| Election Date: | November 2, 2010 |
| Image1: | File:Richard Shelby, official portrait, 112th Congress (cropped 2).jpg |
| Nominee1: | Richard Shelby |
| Party1: | Republican Party (United States) |
| Popular Vote1: | 968,181 |
| Percentage1: | 65.18% |
| Nominee2: | William G. Barnes |
| Party2: | Democratic Party (United States) |
| Popular Vote2: | 515,619 |
| Percentage2: | 34.71% |
| Map Size: | 250px |
| U.S. Senator | |
| Before Election: | Richard Shelby |
| Before Party: | Republican Party (United States) |
| After Election: | Richard Shelby |
| After Party: | Republican Party (United States) |
The 2010 United States Senate election in Alabama took place on November 2, 2010, alongside other elections to the United States Senate in other states, as well as elections to the United States House of Representatives and various state and local elections. Incumbent Republican Senator Richard Shelby won re-election to a fifth term.
In 1986, Shelby won the Democratic nomination for the Senate seat held by Republican Jeremiah Denton, the first Republican elected to the Senate from Alabama since Reconstruction. He won a very close race as the Democrats regained control of the Senate. He was easily re-elected in 1992 even as Bill Clinton lost Alabama's electoral votes.
On November 9, 1994, Shelby switched his party affiliation to Republican, one day after the Republicans won control of both houses in the midterm elections, giving the Republicans a 53–47 majority in the Senate. He won his first full term as a Republican in 1998 by a large margin, and faced no significant opposition in 2004.
Shelby was popular in Alabama. A September 2009 poll showed he had a 58% approval rating, with 35% disapproving.[1]
Shelby, who switched from Democrat to Republican in the mid-1990s, was a popular senator in Alabama for three decades, first elected in 1986. He has over $17 million in the bank, one of the highest of any candidate in the country. Recently, he became even more popular in his opposition to the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) and the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008, as the ranking member of the Senate Banking Committee.
In May, Shelby told reporters "I don't even know who my opponent is."[5]
| Source | Ranking | As of | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cook Political Report[6] | October 26, 2010 | ||
| Rothenberg[7] | October 22, 2010 | ||
| RealClearPolitics[8] | October 26, 2010 | ||
| Sabato's Crystal Ball[9] | October 21, 2010 | ||
| CQ Politics[10] | October 26, 2010 |
| Poll source | Richard Shelby (R) | William G. Barnes (D) | Other | Undecided | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rasmussen Reports (report) | March 29, 2010 | 500 | ± 4.5% | 59% | 32% | 3% | 6% | ||
| Research 2000 ( report) | May 17–19, 2010 | 600 | ± 4.0% | 57% | 33% | 3% | 7% | ||
| Rasmussen Reports (report) | May 25, 2010 | 500 | ± 4.5% | 58% | 31% | 3% | 8% | ||
| Rasmussen Reports (report) | June 3, 2010 | 500 | ± 4.5% | 58% | 31% | 3% | 7% | ||
| Rasmussen Reports (report) | July 22, 2010 | 500 | ± 4.5% | 59% | 29% | 6% | 6% | ||
| Rasmussen Reports (report) | August 19, 2010 | 500 | ± 4.5% | 60% | 28% | 2% | 10% | ||
| Rasmussen Reports (report) | September 21, 2010 | 500 | ± 4.5% | 58% | 30% | 4% | 8% |
Richard Shelby vs. generic Democrat
| Candidate (party) | Receipts | Disbursements | Cash on hand | Debt | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Richard Shelby (R) | $5,103,288 | $1,456,041 | $17,028,219 | $0 | |
| William Barnes (D) | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | |
| Source: Federal Election Commission[12] | |||||
Official candidate websites