Editing Ted Stevens (section)

===Elections===
After practicing private law for a year, Stevens ran for the [[U.S. Senate]] in 1962 and won the [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican]] nomination, defeating only trivial opposition. Stevens was considered a long-shot candidate against the popular former Governor and incumbent [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democratic]] U.S. Senator [[Ernest Gruening]], and he lost in the general election by a 16-point margin, a margin which was much closer than expected, considering Bartlett's 27-point win in the prior election, the stronghold of the Democratic Party in Alaska, and the long service of Gruening.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nbcnews.com/id/wbna38645177|newspaper=NBC News|title=The life and legacy of former Sen. Ted Stevens|date=August 10, 2010|access-date=February 16, 2015|archive-date=October 20, 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141020211121/http://www.nbcnews.com/id/38645177/ns/politics-capitol_hill/t/life-legacy-former-sen-ted-stevens/#.VOI5d_nF-uo|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="leader" /> In 1968, Stevens once again ran for the U.S. Senate, but lost in the Republican primary to Anchorage Mayor [[Elmer E. Rasmuson]]. Rasmuson lost the general election to Democrat [[Mike Gravel]]. In December 1968, after the death of Alaska's other senator, Democrat [[Bob Bartlett]], [[Governor of Alaska|Governor]] [[Walter Joseph Hickel|Wally Hickel]] appointed Stevens to the seat.<ref name="officialbio">{{cite web|access-date=May 31, 2007 |url=http://stevens.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?FuseAction=AboutSenatorStevens.Biography |title=About Senator Stevens" (official biography) |publisher=United States Senator Ted Stevens (official website) |archive-date=May 30, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070530190831/http://stevens.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?FuseAction=AboutSenatorStevens.Biography |url-status=dead }}</ref> Since Gravel took office ten days after Stevens did, Stevens was Alaska's [[senior senator]] for all but ten days of his forty-year tenure in the Senate. However, on the account of Stevens's long career in public service, and age, Gravel took no issue with the situation.

In a [[1970 United States Senate special election in Alaska|special election in 1970]], Stevens won the right to finish the remainder of Bartlett's term. He won the seat in his own right in [[1972 United States Senate election in Alaska|1972]], and was reelected in [[1978 United States Senate election in Alaska|1978]], [[1984 United States Senate election in Alaska|1984]], [[1990 United States Senate election in Alaska|1990]], [[1996 United States Senate election in Alaska|1996]] and [[2002 United States Senate election in Alaska|2002 elections]]. His final term expired in January 2009. Since his first election to a full term in 1972, Stevens never received less than 66% of the vote before his 2008 defeat for re-election.<ref>{{cite news|first=Aaron|last=Blake|url=https://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/946-begichs-entry-tees-up-first-tough-reelection-race-in-stevenss-career/|title=Begich's entry tees up first tough reelection race in Stevens's career|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121116150552/http://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/1137-begichs-entry-tees-up-first-tough-reelection-race-in-stevenss-career |archive-date=November 16, 2012|work=The Hill|date=February 27, 2008|url-status=live|access-date=July 18, 2016}}</ref>

When asked if he would hypothetically accept the 2008 Republican vice presidential nomination if offered, Stevens replied "No. I've got too many things that I still want to do as a senator. Plus, I don't like the idea of a job where you sit around and wait for someone to die."<ref name="vice">{{cite news|first=Hill|last=Staff|url=http://thehill.com/leading-the-news/senators-say-whether-theyd-agree-to-be-vice-president-2008-05-12.html|title=Senators say whether they'd agree to be vice president|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080517001022/http://thehill.com/leading-the-news/senators-say-whether-theyd-agree-to-be-vice-president-2008-05-12.html |archive-date=May 17, 2008|work=The Hill|date=May 12, 2008|access-date=May 28, 2023}}</ref>

Stevens lost his [[2008 United States Senate election in Alaska|Senate re-election bid in 2008]].<ref>{{cite news|first=John|last=Nichols|title=Ted Stevens – and Senate GOP – In Trouble|url=http://www.commondreams.org/archive/2007/07/31/2889|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080708214843/http://www.commondreams.org/archive/2007/07/31/2889/|url-status=dead|archive-date=July 8, 2008|work=[[The Nation]]|date=July 30, 2007|access-date=March 17, 2014}}</ref> He won the Republican primary in August<ref>Kim Murphy, [http://www.latimes.com/news/printedition/asection/la-na-alaska27-2008aug27,0,4017397.story "Alaska: Sen. Stevens wins; Rep. Young in tight race"]{{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080830044300/http://www.latimes.com/news/printedition/asection/la-na-alaska27-2008aug27%2C0%2C4017397.story |date=August 30, 2008 }},|work=Los Angeles Times|date=August 27, 2008|</ref> and was defeated by Anchorage Mayor [[Mark Begich]] in the general election.<ref>{{cite news|title=Senator predicts Democrats will win Alaska Senate race|url=http://juneauempire.com/stories/072408/sta_309065755.shtml|agency=Associated Press|publisher=[[Juneau Empire]]|date=2008-07-24|access-date=July 26, 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081006163136/http://www.juneauempire.com/stories/072408/sta_309065755.shtml|archive-date=October 6, 2008|url-status=dead|df=mdy-all}}</ref> He was the longest-serving U.S. Senator in history to lose re-election, beating out [[Warren Magnuson]], who had served over 36 years before his defeat to [[Slade Gorton]] in [[1980 United States Senate election in Washington|1980]].

Stevens, who would have been 90 years old on election day, had filed to run for a rematch against Begich in the [[2014 United States Senate election in Alaska|2014 election]],<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.adn.com/2009/04/08/753646/stevens-files-candidacy-for-2014.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100820073808/http://www.adn.com/2009/04/08/753646/stevens-files-candidacy-for-2014.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=August 20, 2010 |title=Stevens files candidacy for 2014 election &#124; Ted Stevens |publisher=ADN |date=April 8, 2009 |access-date=November 5, 2012 }}</ref> but he was [[2010 Alaska Turbo Otter crash|killed in a plane crash]] on August 9, 2010.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://articles.ktuu.com/2010-08-10/jim-morhard_24129288 |title=Ted Stevens killed in plane crash |publisher=ktuu.com |date=August 10, 2010 |access-date=November 5, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120724100000/http://articles.ktuu.com/2010-08-10/jim-morhard_24129288 |archive-date=July 24, 2012 |url-status=dead }}</ref> [[Dan S. Sullivan|Dan Sullivan]] would defeat Begich in the election by a margin of 3.1%.