conflict between two very popular politicians in a small state where party loyalty is often trumped by personality. In late September 2005, Hoeven formally declined. Hoeven ran for the Senate in 2010 and was elected. Conrad won at least 53% of the vote in every county in the state. Ohio Incumbent Republican Mike DeWine ran for re-election but lost to Democratic congressman Sherrod Brown. DeWine had approval ratings at 38%, making him the second most unpopular U.S. Senator, behind Pennsylvania Republican Rick Santorum, who was also up for re-election in 2006. Pre-election stories in the U.S. media suggested that the national Republican Party may have given up on saving Senator DeWine's senate seat before election date. Sherrod Brown, former Ohio Secretary of State and U.S. Representative from Ohio's 13th district was the Democratic candidate, and the eventual winner. Paul Hackett, Iraq War veteran announced on February 13, 2006 that he would withdraw from the race, because national party leaders had decided that Sherrod Brown had a better chance against DeWine. The Plain Dealer (2/18/06) also reported that there had been concerns that Hackett might not have had enough money after the primary to run the statewide advertising customary for a Senate campaign. Both Republican challengers, engineer William G. Pierce and David Smith, candidate for OH-02 in 2005, campaigned as conservative alternatives to DeWine, citing DeWine's support for legal abortion and his role as one of the Republican members of the Gang of 14 who compromised with Democrats in a dispute about judicial appointments. DeWine won the primary 71.82% of the votes. Because this race was targeted by Democrats, it made it all the more important to the GOP, who desired to retain Senate control. John McClelland, a spokesman for the Ohio Republican Party said, "It's vitally important to the Republican Party as a whole, so I think that's why you see the president coming to Ohio to support Mike DeWine. Phil Singer, a spokesman for the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee said, "Mike DeWine Senior is in for the fight of his life, make no mistake about it". On July 14, 2006, DeWine's campaign began airing TV commercials depicting a smoking World Trade Center. "The senator was notified ... by a reporter at U.S. News & World Report that the image of the burning Twin Towers could not have depicted the actual event because the smoke was blowing the wrong way."