The 2004 United States Senate election in Wisconsin was held on November 2, 2004. Incumbent Senator Russ Feingold won re-election to a third term. As of 2024[update], this is the last time Democrats won the Class 3 Senate seat from Wisconsin. Russ Feingold defeated Tim Michels in a landslide despite John Kerry narrowly winning Wisconsin over Republican presidential nominee George W. Bush in the concurrent presidential election.
Eugene Hem, perennial candidate and former educator[5]
General election
Campaign
Michels insisted he had more real world experience than Feingold, someone he called an "extreme liberal" who was out of touch with Wisconsin voters.[6] Feingold attacked back by saying that any Republican would be a rubber stamp for President Bush. The incumbent had $2.2 million in the bank, while Michels had already spent $1 million in the primary and had only about $150,000 left.[7]
During both the primary and general election campaigns, Michels ran a series of ads attacking Feingold for his status as the sole senator to oppose the 2001 Patriot Act. One of his earliest ads during the primary accused Feingold of putting "his liberal ideology before our safety", while another primary spot featured footage of the September 11 Attacks and a voice-over saying that "our leaders passed new laws to keep us safe. But Russ Feingold voted against those laws."[8] After easily winning the Republican primary against three opponents, Michel released two more anti-Feingold spots focusing on the Patriot Act. One of the ads showed further footage of the September 11 attacks, while another depicted a Middle Eastern spy photographing a Wisconsin nuclear power plant before Michels appears on-screen and announces that "Unlike Russ Feingold, I will support renewing the PATRIOT Act, because we need to be able to track and stop terrorists before they strike again."[8] Michels reported that one-fifth of his campaign's advertising budget was devoted to making and airing the spots.[8]
In October, based on a belief that Feingold was vulnerable due in part to his vote on the Patriot Act, the NRSC pledged $600,000 in support of the Michel campaign. However, after the Michel commercials generated negative attention and Feingold continued to lead comfortably in most polls, the party rescinded their financial assistance.[9] On October 1, a poll showed Feingold leading 52% to 39%.[10] In mid October, another poll showed Feingold winning 48% to 43%. A poll at the end of the month showed him leading 51% to 36%.[11]
^ ab"Archived copy". elections.state.wi.us. Archived from the original on May 14, 2005. Retrieved July 20, 2022.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
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