The Dems know how to defeat a Republican. Accuse him of some minor moral flaw, do it a few times and every self righteoius Baptist in the state will go tsk tsk and stay home. The self righteous whores make me want to vomit.
That's what happened to get Barbara Boxer into the Senate. Her opponent Bruce Herschenson (sp?) had some minor imbroglio (this was in the 1990s) and the Dems made the most of it. He lost support from the "moralists" and the rest is history. Boxer's on her third term now...