Richard C. Shelby
Last held office: U.S. Senate, Alabama (1987–2023). Ran in 12 elections between 1970 and 2016, winning 12.
Last office: U.S. Senate, AlabamaBorn 1934
- Last margin
- +28.2
- Won 2016
- Elections
- 12
- 1970–2016
Source: Wikidata, congress-legislators and Open States; 99chambers legislative recordsUpdated Nov 7, 2026, 3:00 PM ET
Career
Offices held, and every time Shelby was on a ballot. Filled marks are general elections won; hollow marks are primaries; an orange outline is a loss.
Source: 99chambers results archive (MEDSL, Klarner, state election offices)
Every race Shelby has run
Baseline: how the seat voted for president in the same or nearest year. Running ahead of it means Shelby won voters the party’s presidential nominee did not; primaries have no baseline.
| Year | Office | Stage | Result | Opponents | Share | Margin | Raised | Baseline | Against baseline |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | U.S. Senate, Alabama | General | Won | Ron Crumpton (D) | 64% | R+28.2 | $3.5M | R+28.7 | |
| 2010 | U.S. Senate, Alabama | General | Won | William G. Barnes (D) | 65.2% | R+30.5 | $5.3M | R+21.8 | |
| 2004 | U.S. Senate, Alabama | General | Won | Wayne Sowell (D) | 67.5% | R+35.2 | $6.6M | R+25.8 | |
| 1998 | U.S. Senate, Alabama | General | Won | Clayton Suddith (D) | 63.2% | R+26.6 | $3.5M | R+7.5 | |
| 1992 | U.S. Senate, Alabama | General | Won | Richard Sellers (R), Jerome Shockley (L) | 64.8% | R+31.7 | $2.8M | D+7.6 | |
| 1986 | U.S. Senate, Alabama | General | Won | Jeremiah Denton (R) | 50.3% | R+0.6 | $2.4M | D+22.5 | |
| 1984 | U.S. House, AL-7 | General | Won | Charles "chuck" Ewing (L) | 96.8% | R+93.6 | $407.1K | — | |
| 1982 | U.S. House, AL-7 | General | Won | James Jones (L) | 96.8% | R+93.7 | $672.8K | — | |
| 1980 | U.S. House, AL-7 | General | Won | James E. "jim" Bacon (R), Joe Walker (L), Mrs Mary Owensby (I) | 72.6% | R+46.9 | $245.8K | — | |
| 1978 | U.S. House, AL-7 | General | Won | Fulton Gray (C), Jim Scruggs (R) | 93.8% | R+89.9 | — | — | |
| 1974 | Alabama State Senate, District 16 | General | Won | Unopposed | 100% | — | — | — | |
| 1970 | Alabama State Senate, District 11 | General | Won | Unopposed | 100% | — | — | — |
Source: 99chambers results archive
Campaign money, 2015–16
- Raised
- $3.5M
- Spent
- $11.5M
- Cash
- $10M
Source: FEC filings through Dec 31, 2016Updated Oct 8, 2026, 10:37 AM ET
Seats Shelby has held
- U.S. Senate, Alabama · 1987–2023
- U.S. House, AL-7 · 1979–1987
- Alabama State Senate, District 16 · 1974–1978
- Alabama State Senate, District 11 · 1970–1974
Source: 99chambers results archive
Who Shelby has run against
- Ron Crumpton (D) · 2016 election, won
- William G. Barnes (D) · 2010 election, won
- Wayne Sowell (D) · 2004 election, won
- Clayton Suddith (D) · 1998 election, won
- Richard Sellers (R) · 1992 election, won
- Jeremiah Denton (R) · 1986 election, won
- Charles "chuck" Ewing (L) · 1984 election, won
- James Jones (L) · 1982 election, won
Source: 99chambers results archive
In the polls
Included in 5 polls; Shelby’s best result was 62% (U.S. Senate in Alabama, 1998).
Shelby’s polls in the database →How we know Shelby
One person, matched across every source we use.
- Bioguide S000320
- FEC S6AL00013
- Wikidata Q472254
- Ballotpedia Richard Shelby
- Vote Smart 53266
- GovTrack 300089
- OpenSecrets N00009920
Source: Identity links: Wikidata, congress-legislators, Open States, FECUpdated Nov 7, 2026, 3:00 PM ET