2000 United States Senate election in Maryland

The 2000 United States Senate election in Maryland was held on November 7, 2000. Incumbent Democratic U.S. Senator Paul Sarbanes won re-election to a fifth term.

Democratic

 * Paul Sarbanes, incumbent U.S. Senator first elected in 1976

Republican

 * Paul H. Rappaport, former Howard County police chief and nominee for Lieutenant Governor in 1994

Campaign
Rappaport won the Republican primary against S. Rob Sobhani, Ross Zimmerman Pierpont, Robin Ficker, Kenneth R. Timmerman, Kenneth Wayman and John Stafford through a grassroots movement with a plurality of just 23%. Rappaport, a major underdog, pushed for three debates. The four-term incumbent agreed to one debate on October 26.

Counties that flipped from Republican to Democratic

 * Anne Arundel (largest municipality: Annapolis)

Counties that flipped from Democrat to Republican

 * Harford (largest municipality: Aberdeen)