2008Final results
2008 election for Missouri's 3rd District
U.S. House · Missouri
Russ Carnahan (D) won with 66.4% of the vote, defeating Chris Sander (R) by 36.0 points.
Russ CarnahanDemocrat · winner
66.4%202,470
Chris SanderRepublican
30.4%92,759
Kevin C. BabcockLibertarian
1.8%5,518
Cynthia "cindy" RedburnConstitution
1.4%4,324
305,071 votes
Source: MIT Election Data and Science LabUpdated Sep 30, 2026, 7:25 AM ET
The seat over time
D − R margin in this seat's races around 2008
Races before and after
Source: MIT Election Data and Science LabUpdated Sep 30, 2026, 7:25 AM ET
Money in this race
Each line compares the two campaigns on one scale.
Russ CarnahanChris Sander
$962.4K
Raised by the campaign
$36.1K
$883.2K
Spent by the campaign
$32.4K
$165.7K
Cash on hand
$3.7K
Campaign money: FEC, through Dec 31, 2008; FEC, through Oct 15, 2008.
Source: FEC campaign filingsUpdated Dec 31, 2008
The candidates
Russ Carnahan (D)Chris Sander (R)
Also on the ballot: Kevin C. Babcock (Libertarian), 1.8%; Cynthia "cindy" Redburn (Constitution), 1.4%