Castle Won’t Launch Write-In Bid

After losing the GOP Senate Primary to Christine O’Donnell, Mike Castle has decided that he will not launch a write-in bid for the seat once held by Joe Biden:

Delaware Rep. Mike Castle, who was upended by Tea Party insurgent Christine O’Donnell in the GOP Senate primary two weeks ago, has decided against a write-in bid for the open seat.

In a statement released late Wednesday night, Castle said, “While I would have been honored to represent Delaware in the U.S. Senate, I do not believe that seeking office in this manner is in the best interest of all Delawareans. Therefore, it’s time for Jane and me to begin thinking about the next chapter of our lives.”

Castle’s four-paragraph statement did not mention O’Donnell or grant her an endorsement.

The move by the mild-mannered moderate is no surprise: Even after Castle caught some political observers off guard last week by flirting with the possibility of a write-in effort, his top aides always pegged the chances of it “under 5 percent.”

Castle, who served two terms as governor and then nine terms in the House, said he weighed a write-in bid seriously. A top Republican in Delaware told POLITICO he even went as far as polling a potential three-way race with O’Donnell and Democratic nominee Chris Coons.

Rasmussen Reports released a survey Monday that showed Castle drawing more votes from Coons than O’Donnell in a potential three-candidate contest.

“Many Delawareans have encouraged me to pursue a write-in candidate for the general election in November. I understand why people care so deeply about this election. I listened closely to many viewpoints and carefully considered the option of staying in the race,” Castle said.

This announcement would seem to foreclose the one opportunity that Christine O’Donnell would’ve had to win this race.

FILED UNDER: 2010 Election, US Politics, , , , , , ,
Doug Mataconis
About Doug Mataconis
Doug Mataconis held a B.A. in Political Science from Rutgers University and J.D. from George Mason University School of Law. He joined the staff of OTB in May 2010 and contributed a staggering 16,483 posts before his retirement in January 2020. He passed far too young in July 2021.

Comments

  1. James says:

    Delaware Rep. Mike Castle, who was upended by Tea Party “insurgent ” Christine O’Donnell in the GOP Senate primary two weeks ago, has decided against a write-in bid for the open seat.

    Insurgent / militant, I thought that was Iraq ?

    Good for Castle, will he be a groupie (lobbyist etc.) or retire with Dignity?

    Groupie: Clinton, Carter, Sharp-ton, Jackson…….