Age-based campaigns by challengers are currently 0 for 50, or so.
Not in Lautenberg's case in his first Senate campaign.
That was an open seat, so Lautenberg wasn't technically a challenger.
Age-based campaigns are just as useless as "The Incumbent will die" campaigns.
Eisenhower in 1956 was sorta like a combo.
John Raese couldn't get traction on Byrd by bringing up age.
Bill Nelson tried to use Lawton Chiles age and health against him in 1990, and lost. Because Florida is full of older people who dislike that sort of talk.
I'm sure one of the people facing Strom Thurmond tried to bring up that Strom was old as biblical dirt.
As for Barbour/Stennis, Barbour won two counties.
Here's the map.
Stennis is from Kemper County as well.
But, if Barbour won here, here's some changes in history.
Trent Lott never gets elected Senator, but instead becomes Speaker of the House in the 1990s. Lott was Minority Whip in the 80s.
But, that is the case if Lott is able capitalize on Clinton's failings like Newt Gingrich did.
Lott would have probably stunted the rise of Gingrich, and possibly stunted the rise of DeLay.
Wayne Dowdy would have probably ran in 1988 against Barbour. Although he could have kept his seat for awhile.
And Gene Taylor would have probably stayed in the Mississippi State Senate instead of running to replace Lott in 1988, and winning a special election in 1989.
