Seats Where the 2006 Winner is Not Running

Normally the winner of the Senate seat in 2006 would be running for reelection in 2012. This page lists races where that is not the case, either because the 2006 winner is retiring in 2012 or because he or she has resigned or died and a special election is being held in 2012 or was held in 2008 or 2010. Seats like these tend to be more competitive than usual. The colors represent the incumbent party.

State Incumbent Party Open? Notes
AZ Jon Kyl GOP Yes He could have easily won but decided against it
CT Joe Lieberman Ind Yes He had almost no chance of winning so he retired
HI Daniel Akaka Dem Yes He retired due to old age
IN Richard Lugar GOP Yes He was defeated in a primary
MA Scott Brown GOP No He won a special election after Ted Kennedy died
ME Olympia Snowe GOP Yes She was just disgusted with how the Senate has become completely dysfunctional
MS Roger Wicker GOP No Wicker won a special election in 2008 after Trent Lott resigned mid-term
NE Ben Nelson Dem Yes Both parties hate him and he was likely to lose anyway
NM Jeff Bingaman Dem Yes He could have won but chose to retire
NV Dean Heller GOP No Heller was appointed when his predecessor was caught having an affair with a staffer's wife
NY Kirsten Gillibrand Dem No Appointed after Hillary Clinton resigned and won a special election in 2010
ND Kent Conrad Dem Yes North Dakota is tough for a Democrat, but he has won before
TX Kay Hutchison GOP Yes She was embarrassed by her gubernatorial defeat
VA Jim Webb Dem Yes He apparently had enough of politics
WV Joe Manchin Dem No Won a special election in 2010 after Robert Byrd died
WI Herb Kohl Dem Yes Age probably played the biggest role here
WY John Barrasso GOP No He won a special election in 2008 after being appointed to fill a vacancy