United States Senate election in Maryland, 2016

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2016 U.S. Senate Election in Maryland

General Election Date November 8, 2016

Primary Date April 26, 2016

November 8 Election Winner: Chris Van Hollen

Incumbent prior to election: Barbara Mikulski

Race Ratings Cook Political Report: Solid D[1] Sabato's Crystal Ball: Safe D[2] Rothenberg & Gonzales: Safe D[3]

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2016 U.S. House Elections

Voters in Maryland elected one member to the U.S. Senate in the election on November 8, 2016.

Heading into the election, Ballotpedia rated Maryland's U.S. Senate race as safely Democratic. In the U.S. Senate race in Maryland, incumbent Barbara Mikulski chose to retire, leaving the seat open in 2016. The election attracted a large number of Democratic, Republican and independent candidates. Chris Van Hollen (D) defeated Kathy Szeliga (R), Arvin Vohra (Libertarian), Margaret Flowers (Green), and several write-in candidates in the general election on November 8, 2016. Van Hollen defeated nine other Democrats to win the nomination, and Szeliga defeated 13 other Republicans in the primary. The primary elections took place on April 26, 2016.^[4][5]

Primary: A primary election is an election in which registered voters select a candidate that they believe should be a political party's candidate for elected office to run in the general election. They are also used to choose convention delegates and party leaders. Primaries are state-level and local-level elections that take place prior to a general election. Maryland utilizes a closed primary system. Although parties may hold open primaries, parties generally permit only registered party members to vote in their primaries.^[6][7]

For information about which offices are nominated via primary election, see this article.

Incumbent: The election filled the Class 3 Senate seat held by Barbara Mikulski (D). She was first elected in 1986. Mikulski announced in March 2015 that she would not seek re-election in 2016.

Election results

General election

U.S. Senate, Maryland General Election, 2016

Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Democratic	Chris Van Hollen	60.9%	1,659,907
	Republican	Kathy Szeliga	35.7%	972,557
	Green	Margaret Flowers	3.3%	89,970
	N/A	Write-in	0.1%	3,736
Total Votes				2,726,170
Source: Maryland State Board of Elections

Primary election

U.S. Senate, Maryland Democratic Primary, 2016

Candidate	Vote %	Votes
Chris Van Hollen	53.2%	470,320
Donna Edwards	38.9%	343,620
Freddie Dickson	1.7%	14,856
Theresa Scaldaferri	1.5%	13,178
Violet Staley	1.2%	10,244
Lih Young	1%	8,561
Charles Smith	0.9%	7,912
Ralph Jaffe	0.8%	7,161
Blaine Taylor	0.7%	5,932
Ed Tinus	0.3%	2,560
Total Votes		884,344
Source: Maryland State Board of Elections

U.S. Senate, Maryland Republican Primary, 2016

Candidate	Vote %	Votes
Kathy Szeliga	35.6%	135,337
Chris Chaffee	13.7%	52,066
Chrys Kefalas	9.6%	36,340
Richard Douglas	7.6%	29,007
Dave Wallace	6.1%	23,226
Sean Connor	5.7%	21,727
Lynn Richardson	5.5%	20,792
John Graziani	4.4%	16,722
Greg Holmes	4.3%	16,148
Mark McNicholas	2.6%	9,988
Joseph Hooe	2.2%	8,282
Anthony Seda	1%	3,873
Richard Shawver	0.8%	3,155
Garry Yarrington	0.8%	2,988
Total Votes		379,651
Source: Maryland State Board of Elections

Candidates

General election candidates: Chris Van Hollen a Kathy Szeliga Arvin Vohra Margaret Flowers Michael Pearson (Write-in) Bob Robinson (Write-in) Charles Smith (Write-in) Lih Young (Write-in) Ed Tinus (Write-in)

Democratic Fred Donald Dickson, Jr.[9] Donna Edwards - U.S. Rep.[9][10] Ralph Jaffe[9][11] Theresa Scaldaferri[9] Charles Smith[9] Violet Scheryll Staley[9] Blaine Taylor[9] Ed Tinus[9] Chris Van Hollen - U.S. Rep.[9][10] a Lih Young[9]

Republican Chris Chaffee[9] Sean Connor[9] Richard Douglas - Former Pentagon official and Capitol Hill lawyer[9][12] John Graziani[9] Greg Holmes[9] Joseph Hooe[9][10] Chrys Kefalas - Former aide to Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich, Jr. (R)[9][13] Mark McNicholas[9] Lynn Richardson[9] Anthony Seda[9][10] Richard Shawver[9] Kathy Szeliga - Delegate of Baltimore County, Minority Whip in the House of Delegates[9][14][15] a Dave Wallace[9][10] Garry Yarrington[9]

Third Party/Other Arvin Vohra (Libertarian)[9] a Margaret Flowers (Green)[9][16] a

Race background

Incumbent Barbara Mikulski did not run for re-election to her seat in 2016, making this a race for an open seat. The 2012 Senate race margin of victory was 29.7 in favor of the Democratic Party, and the 2010 margin of victory was 26.4, also in favor of the Democratic Party, indicating it was not likely the seat would flip to Republican control in 2016.

Noteworthy events

In December 2015, Emily's List filed a complaint against Van Hollen for allegedly using FEC filing data to illegally obtain info on and target donors for campaigning purposes. Emily's List President Stephanie Schriock wrote to donors regarding the event, "We are taking action to protect you from actors willing to abuse the system." According to the Washington Post, "Supporters in at least 11 states got a letter and solicitation from the Van Hollen campaign. The campaign letter, by former ­NARAL Pro-Choice America board Chairman Rosalyn Levy Jonas, refers to an email in which Emily’s List identified Van Hollen incorrectly as a Republican. 'Sadly, Emily’s List, which I have always supported in the past, has become a party to . . . deception,' Jonas said." Van Hollen's campaign manager, Sheila O’Connell, said the complaint was “a politically motivated and frivolous attack that we are confident will be dismissed."^[17]

Endorsements

Donna Edwards

• National Organization for Women (NOW) - "Donna Edwards has always been there for women, and in 2016 women will be there for Donna Edwards."^[18]
• International Union of Bricklayers and Allied Craftworkers - "The International Union of Bricklayers and Allied Craftworkers is proud to endorse Donna Edwards for the United States Senate in Maryland. On picket lines with workers or in the halls of Congress, Donna has consistently put working families first, regardless of which direction the political winds are blowing. As Maryland's next Senator, she'll fight for good jobs, fair wages, and a level playing field for all workers."^[19]
• EMILY's List - On November 30, 2015, the organization announced that it would spend $1 million on advertising to support Edwards.
• Rep. Lacy Clay (D-Mo.)^[20]
• Rep. Robin Kelly(D-Ill.)^[20]
• Rep. Hank Johnson (D-Ga).^[20]
• Baltimore State's Attorney Marilyn Mosby - "As an African American female elected official, I understand that we bring a unique perspective that can and will change the trajectory of our communities. For this reason and so many more, I am supporting Donna Edwards."^[21]

Chris Van Hollen

• Sierra Club - "Chris is a climate champion, an environmental leader and a clean energy jobs creator. He has shown that he has the fortitude to craft and pass legislation that will combat the climate crisis. But more importantly, he will continue to do so when he’s in the United States Senate."^[22]
• SEIU (Service Employees International Union) Maryland/D.C. - "We are proud to support Chris because he has a twenty-five year record of working with our members to support education and improve the lives of all Marylanders."^[23]
• State Sen. Joanne Benson^[24]
• Del. Maggie McIntosh^[25]
• Former state Delegate Heather Mizeur - "There's been one person beating the fiscal drum of addressing income inequality, and that has been Chris Van Hollen. While other people like to play us-versus-them politics, Chris and I like to look at 'How are we going to get this done?"^[26]
• Seven Maryland SEIU unions^[20]
• Rep. Dutch Ruppersberger^[27]

Polls

Media

Donna Edwards

• In November 2015, Emily's list stated it would spend $1 million in advertising to support Donna Edwards' congressional run in 2016.^[28]

Chris Van Hollen

Campaign contributions

Chris Van Hollen

Donna Edwards

Election history

2012

See also: United States Senate elections in Maryland, 2012

On November 6, 2012, Ben Cardin (D) won re-election in the general election. He defeated a host of challengers, with Dan Bongino (R) coming in second.

U.S. Senate, Maryland General Election, 2012

Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Democratic	Ben Cardin Incumbent	56%	1,474,028
	Republican	Dan Bongino	26.3%	693,291
	Libertarian	Dean Ahmad	1.2%	32,252
	Independent	Rob Sobhani	16.4%	430,934
	Democratic	Lih Young (Write-in)	0%	163
	Republican	Mary Podlesak (Write-in)	0%	21
	Independent	Brandy Baker	0%	151
	Independent	Ed Tinus	0%	48
	N/A	Other Write-ins	0.1%	2,346
Total Votes				2,633,234
Source: Maryland State Board of Elections "U.S. Senator"

2010

On November 2, 2010, Barbara Mikulski (D) won re-election to the United States Senate. She defeated Eric Wargotz (R), Richard Shawver (Constitution), Kenniss Henry (Green), Claud L. Ashbury (Write-in, R), Donald Kaplan (Write-in), James T. Lynch, Jr. (Write-in, D), Lih Young (Write-in), Denise L. Whittington (Write-in), Robert J. Evans (Write-in) and Mary Catherine Podlesak (Write-in, R) in the general election.^[29]

U.S. Senate, Maryland General Election, 2010
Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Democratic	Barbara Mikulski incumbent	62.2%	1,140,531
	Republican	Eric Wargotz	35.8%	655,666
	Constitution	Richard Shawver	0.8%	14,746
	Green	Kenniss Henry	1.1%	20,717
	N/A	Write-in	0.1%	1,644
	Write-in Republican	Claud L. Ashbury	0%	204
	N/A	Donald Kaplan	0%	110
	Write-in Democratic	James T. Lynch, Jr.	0%	84
	N/A	Lih Young	0%	80
	N/A	Denise L. Whittington	0%	56
	N/A	Robert J. Evans	0%	14
	Write-in Republican	Mary Catherine Podlesak	0%	6
Total Votes				1,833,858

Important dates and deadlines

See also: Maryland elections, 2016

The calendar below lists important dates for political candidates in Maryland in 2016.

See also

• United States House of Representatives elections in Maryland, 2016
• United States Senate elections, 2016
• Barbara Mikulski

Footnotes

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