# 1986 United States Senate election in Vermont

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vte :
The 1986 United States Senate election in Vermont was held on November 4, 1986. Incumbent Democratic U.S. Senator Patrick Leahy won reelection to a third term, defeating Republican former governor Richard Snelling by a landslide margin of almost 30 points, in a race that was initially expected to be quite competitive, as Snelling was recruited to run by popular President Ronald Reagan.

## Democratic primary
### Candidates

* Patrick Leahy, incumbent U.S. Senator

### Results

Democratic primary results :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Democratic | Patrick Leahy (incumbent) | 21,255 | 97.63% |
| | Democratic | Write-ins | 516 | 2.37% |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 21,771 | 100.00% |

## Liberty Union primary
### Candidates

* Jerry Levy, sociologist and perennial candidate

### Results

Liberty Union primary results :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Liberty Union | Jerry Levy | 147 | 93.04% |
| | Liberty Union | Write-ins | 11 | 6.96% |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 158 | 100.00% |

## Republican primary

The popular former Governor of Vermont, Richard A. Snelling, had faced pressure from national Republicans to enter the race, but had spent the majority of 1985 convinced that he would not be a candidate. In October 1985, however, encouraged by figures such as New Mexico Senator Pete Domenici and President of the United States Ronald Reagan, Snelling changed his mind and entered the race, claiming that a lack of action over the United States national deficit had encouraged him to run.

### Candidates

* Richard A. Snelling, former Governor of Vermont
* Anthony N. Doria, founder of the Vermont Law School and perennial candidate

### Results

Republican primary results :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Republican | Richard A. Snelling | 21,477 | 75.11% |
| | Republican | Anthony N. Doria | 6,493 | 22.71% |
| | Republican | Write-ins | 625 | 2.19% |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 28,595 | 100.00% |

## General election
### Campaign

Both Leahy and Snelling were well-respected and highly popular in Vermont, and the general feeling was that they would both make good Senators. However, Snelling was felt to be at a disadvantage for several reasons, including the fact that his main campaign plank was deficit reduction, which The Caledonian-Record noted Leahy was already a well-known advocate for, and the fact that Leahy had acquired a reputation as one of the Senate's most knowledgeable figures on the issue of nuclear proliferation, an issue which the Brattleboro Reformer noted Snelling had no experience with.
Snelling frequently attacked Leahy by calling him a "liberal" during the campaign, part of a broader strategy of negative campaigning against the incumbent.

### Candidates

* Anthony Doria (C), perennial candidate
* Patrick Leahy (D), incumbent U.S. Senator
* Jerry Levy (LU), sociologist and perennial candidate
* Richard A. Snelling (R), former Governor of Vermont

### Endorsements

State officials
* Tom Harkin, U.S. Senator from Iowa
Labor unions
* Vermont Nurses Association
Organizations
* Democratic Senate Campaign Committee
* Vermont Audubon Council
* Vermont Natural Resources Council
* Vermont Sierra Club
Executive officials
* Ronald Reagan, President of the United States
* James Baker, U.S. Secretary of the Treasury
State officials
* John McClaughry, state senator

### Results

General election results :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Democratic | Patrick Leahy (incumbent) | 124,123 | 63.16% | +13.34% |
| | Republican | Richard A. Snelling | 67,798 | 34.50% | −14.00% |
| | Conservative | Anthony N. Doria | 2,963 | 1.51% | N/A |
| | Liberty Union | Jerry Levy | 1,583 | 0.81% | N/A |
| | Write-in | Write-in | 65 | 0.02% | N/A |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 196,532 | | |
| | Democratic hold | Democratic hold | Democratic hold | Democratic hold |