The 1968 United States Senate elections were elections for the United States Senate. Held on November 5, the 34 seats of Class 3 were contested in regular elections. They coincided with the presidential election of the same year. The Republicans picked up five net seats in the Senate. This saw Republicans win a Senate seat in Florida for the first time since Reconstruction.
Republicans would gain another seat after the election when Alaska Republican Ted Stevens was appointed to replace Democrat Bob Bartlett, reducing Democrats' majority to 57–43.
Incumbent retired. New senator elected. Republican hold. Incumbent resigned December 16, 1968 to give successor preferential seniority. Winner appointed December 17, 1968.
Incumbent lost renomination. New senator elected. Democratic hold. Incumbent resigned December 27, 1968 to give successor preferential seniority. Winner appointed December 28, 1968.
Democrat Ernest Gruening lost renomination to fellow Democrat Mike Gravel. Gruening then ran as an Independent, but lost again to Gravel in the general election, thereby keeping the seat in Democratic hands.
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Two months after the election, on December 11, 1968, the other Alaskan senator, Democrat Bob Bartlett, died. Republican Ted Stevens was then appointed to that other seat.
Incumbent Democrat Carl Hayden did not run for re-election to an eighth term, with his long-time staff member Roy Elson running as the Democratic Party nominee to replace him. Elson beat State Treasurer of Arizona Bob Kennedy in the primary.
Elson was defeated by a wide margin, however, by former U.S. senator and Republican presidential nominee Barry Goldwater. Prior to Goldwater's election, the seat had been held for decades by the Democratic Party under Carl Hayden, and would remain under Republican Party control until 2020. Elson had previously challenged U.S. senator Paul Fannin in 1964, when Goldwater vacated his seat to run for President against Lyndon B. Johnson.
Talmadge sought another term to the Senate and was easily re-elected. The election was notable for the Georgia Republican Party, as it marked the first U.S. Senate election where it fielded a candidate. Patton lost by over 50% to Talmadge.
While Javits did not face any challengers for the Republican nomination, he did face a minor one when seeking the Liberal Party of New York's nomination.
The general election was fought between the Democratic incumbent Sam Ervin and the Republican nominee Robert Somers. Ervin won re-election to a third full term, with over 60% of the vote.
The first round of the Primary Election was held on May 4, 1968.[12] The runoff for the Republican Party candidates took place on June 1.[13]
1968 North Carolina U.S. Senate Democratic primary election
Only Young filed as a Republican, and the endorsed Democratic candidate was Herschel Lashkowitz of Fargo, North Dakota, who was serving as the mayor of the city since 1954. Young and Lashkowitz won the primary elections for their respective parties.
Incumbent Democratic U.S. senator Mike Monroney was running for re-election to a fourth term, but was defeated by Republican former Governor Henry Bellmon.
Incumbent Democrat Wayne Morse was seeking a fifth term, but narrowly lost re-election to 36-year-old Republican State Representative Bob Packwood race.[16]
Incumbent Democrat Fritz Hollings easily defeated Republican state senatorMarshall Parker in a rematch of the election two years earlier, to win his second (his first full) term.
After a close election loss to Fritz Hollings in 1966, the Republicans felt that Parker might have a chance at defeating Hollings by riding Nixon's coattails in the general election. However, the Republicans did not provide Parker with the financial resources to compete, and he subsequently lost by a bigger margin to Hollings than two years prior.
^ abcReflecting the result of the November 1968 elections, only. Following those elections, upon the death of Alaska Democratic Senator Bob Bartlett and subsequent appointment of Republican Ted Stevens, the partisan balance at the beginning of the 91st United States Congress stood at 57–43 in favor of the Democrats.
^ abThe Liberal Party in New York nominated Jacob Javits, a Republican, but the Clerk of the U.S. House of Representatives did not tabulate their votes, totaling 458,936, into the national Republican total.[1]
"Supplemental Report of the Secretary of State to the General Assembly of South Carolina." Reports and Resolutions of South Carolina to the General Assembly of the State of South Carolina. Volume II. Columbia, SC: 1969, p. 19.
Kalk, Bruce H. (2001). The Origins of the Southern Strategy: Two-Party Competition in South. Lexington Books. p. 86.
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