“It's turnout, stupid” became the mantra of the Missouri Senate contest between Democrat Jean Carnahan and Republican Jim Talent. With more than four-fifths of the electorate having made their choice prior to Labor Day in a race that was tight from the beginning, each campaign sought to stimulate its base (urban, women, labor, blacks for Carnahan—rural, men, business, whites for Talent) and soften the edge among its opponents (e.g., Women for Talent, Sportsmen for Carnahan). After a record $40 million in expenditures (half by the candidates, half by the parties and independent groups), two late visits by President Bush to a pair of Republican strongholds contributed to a narrow (49.8% to 48.7%) Talent victory.