1996 Senate elections · Iowa history
Iowa U.S. Senate election 1996
Tom Harkin DEM +5.1 · Class II seat · held 11/5/96
- Votes counted
- 1,224,054
- Margin
- 5.1 pts
- Seat held by
- Democraticheld
- President in IA
- D+10.3same year
General election 11/5/96
| Candidate | Party | Votes | Share | Bar |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tom Harkin Won | DEM | 634,166 | 51.81% | |
| James Ross Lightfoot | REP | 571,807 | 46.71% | |
| Sue A. Atkinson | IND | 9,768 | 0.80% | |
| Fred Gratzon | NLP | 4,248 | 0.35% | |
| Joe Sulentic | IND | 1,941 | 0.16% | |
| Shirley E. Pena | SWP | 1,844 | 0.15% | |
| Scattering | — | 280 | 0.02% | |
| Total | 1,224,054 | |||
Official source: 96Stat.htm
Other Iowa Senate races
| Year | Seat | Winner | Margin |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | Class III | Chuck Grassley | 12.0 |
| 2020 | Class II | Joni K. Ernst | 6.5 |
| 2016 | Class III | Chuck Grassley | 24.4 |
| 2014 | Class II | Joni K. Ernst | 8.3 |
| 2010 | Class III | Chuck Grassley | 31.1 |
| 2008 | Class II | Tom Harkin | 25.4 |
| 2004 | Class III | Chuck Grassley | 42.3 |
| 2002 | Class II | Tom Harkin | 10.4 |
| 1998 | Class III | Chuck Grassley | 37.9 |
| 1996 | Class II | Tom Harkin | 5.1 |
| 1992 | Class III | Chuck Grassley | 42.4 |
| 1990 | Class II | Tom Harkin | 9.1 |
Questions and answers
Who won the 1996 Iowa Senate race?
Tom Harkin (DEM) won with 51.8% of the vote, ahead of James Ross Lightfoot (46.7%), a margin of 5.1 points.
Did the Iowa Senate seat change party in 1996?
No. The Democratic Party held it.
How many votes were cast in the 1996 Iowa Senate race?
1,224,054 votes were counted for the candidates in the general election.
Compiled by FiveThirtyEight from the official source linked above.