Ted Stevens, who had served as a US Senator for Alaska since 1968, was caught up in a larger probe that included Federal Bureau of Investigation raids in the summer of 2007 at the offices of six Alaska legislators, including Stevens' son, Ben, who was then the president of the state Senate, and a raid on Senator Ted Stevens' personal home.
Stevens drew the FBI and Justice Department attention over his home renovation project done in 2000, which more than doubled the size of his home. Bill Allen, founder of VECO Corporation, an oil supplying and engineering company, oversaw the work at Senator Steven's home. Bill Allen has since pleaded guilty to bribing Alaska state legislators.
On October 27, 2008, Stevens was convicted on seven counts of making false statements. His conviction was reversed,\7]) six months after he lost the election to the Democrat, because of misconduct by prosecutors, which included withholding and falsifying evidence.\8])
Ted Stevens was an unbelievably popular senator prior to his charges, winning his 2002 senate election with 78% of the vote. His scandal-ridden election just so happened to coincide with the 2008 blowout for Democrats, where the economy was in dire straits, George W Bush was very unpopular, and the Democratic party was spearheaded by a then ascendant Barack Obama.
In November 2008, Democrat Mark Begich defeated Ted Stevens by 3,953 votes to give the Democratic Party its 60th Senate vote, which would later be the deciding vote on the passing of the Affordable Care Act that would be decided in the Senate 60-39 on party line
Posted by Nathan_185