Senate Seat Showdowns

Michigan CBS NEWS PROJECTS DEBBIE STABENOWWINNER Democrat Debbie Stabenow (Incumbent) vs. Republican Mike Bouchard CBS News Race Outlook: Stabenow upset Sen. Spencer Abraham in 2000 in what was the most expensive Senate race in Michigan history. Abraham ran ads calling her a “free-spending liberal,” but Stabenow hoarded her money for an October ad buy. She defended herself, citing that she voted for the balanced-budget amendment and ending the marriage penalty. In 2000, she had been down by as much as 17 percent in one poll in mid-October, but closed the gap and wound up winning by 1 percent. Bouchard came on strong leading up to the Republican primary, as state party elders rallied behind him. They did not believe Bouchard's main opponent, the Rev. Keith Butler, who is deeply conservative, could defeat Stabenow. The Detroit Free Press endorsed Bouchard for the Republican primary: he “would be the stronger GOP candidate against Stabenow and a more effective senator.” Bouchard, a police officer turned politician, was appointed Oakland County Sheriff in 1999. He won re-election twice by large margins. Stabenow and Bouchard differ greatly on the issues. He believes the U.S. should not pull troops out of Iraq too early, is anti-abortion rights and is against affirmative action. She has been an opponent of the war from the start, and is pro-abortion rights (she voted against a ban on partial-birth abortions). On national security, she voted to restrict missile defense and to ban the bunker buster bomb.