Sports was on the sidelines for the U.S. Senate races. The only senators with jock connections — Sen. Jim Bunning of Kentucky, a Hall of Fame pitcher, and Sen. Herb Kohl of Wisconsin, owner of the Milwaukee Bucks — were not up for election.
Joey Browner, a former Pro Bowl safety with the Minnesota Vikings, lost as a write-in for the City Council in the Minneapolis suburb of Eagan.
In state legislative races, Peter Boulware, a former star linebacker at Florida State who went on to the Baltimore Ravens, was vying for a seat in Florida and trailing by 403 votes. Boulware, a Republican, appeared headed for a recount.
Bob Heaton, who played with Larry Bird on the Indiana State team that went to the 1979 Final Four, lost a close race in Indiana.
Two ex-college football players were re-elected in the Oklahoma Legislature — Todd Thomsen, a former punter and kicker for Oklahoma, and Tad Jones, a former backup quarterback at Tulsa. Anton Gunn, once an offensive lineman at South Carolina, won a seat in the South Carolina Legislature.
Greg Hopkins, a former Arena Football League player with the Los Angeles Avengers, was beaten by Bill DeWeese, the Democratic caucus leader in the Pennsylvania House.
In Hawaii, Mufi Hannemann, a 6-foot-7 former Harvard basketball player, gained a second term as Honolulu mayor.
Robinson, in his first year as Oregon State’s coach, has refrained from turning his coaching job into a campaign office and he’s been adamant about not imposing his views on his players.
“I never lobby these guys, never,” he said leading to the election. “I just tell them how important it is to vote.”
Robinson is not the only one in his family with a basketball pedigree. Obama, who played two hours of basketball with friends and staff while awaiting the returns, was on the Hawaii state championship team his senior year in high school at Punahou School.
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Sports and family were not limited to the Obamas. Connie Mack, the great grandson of the legendary manager, won re-election as a Florida congressman. George Unseld, the brother of NBA great Wes Unseld, easily captured a spot on the Louisville (Ky.) Metro Council.
And Michael Victorino, the father of Philadelphia Phillies center fielder Shane Victorino, was unopposed in Hawaii for the Maui County Council.
In ballot measures tied to sports, Massachusetts voted to ban greyhound racing, and Maryland authorized slot-machine gambling, which could be key in bolstering thoroughbred racing in the state.
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