ABSTRACT
As both parties prepared for the 1990 congressional elections, windows of opportunity opened. Three United States senators were retiring and another was seeking his state's governorship. At least eleven representatives were retiring; another sixteen had announced they would leave the House to run for other offices. But interestingly, one of the common themes in the stories discussing these open seats was the reluctance of prominent potential candidates to throw their hats into the ring. In Idaho, the Republicans had two well-known candidates for the Senate seat being vacated by James McClure, but Congressman Richard Stallings and former Governor John V. Evans both declined to seek the Democratic nomination, leaving that slot on the ballot open for a less experienced candidate. Similarly in Colorado, Republican Congressman Hank Brown was seeking the seat vacated by William Armstrong, but all of the prominent Democrats mentioned as strong contenders decided not to run. 1 If this was the case in open seats, it was even more the case where challengers were sought to oppose incumbents. Congressional Quarterly's Special Report, "Early Readings on '90 Elections," featured seat after seat in the House and Senate in which prominently mentioned challengers had decided not to take on potentially vulnerable incumbents.
