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.

Quick Facts 34 of the 100 seats in the United States Senate 51 seats needed for a majority, Majority party ...

1968 United States Senate elections

← 1966 November 5, 1968 1970 →
34 of the 100 seats in the United States Senate 51 seats needed for a majority
Majority party Minority party   Leader Mike Mansfield Everett Dirksen Party Democratic Republican Leader since January 3, 1961 January 3, 1959 Leader's seat Montana Illinois Seats before 63 37 Seats after 58[lower-alpha 1] 42[lower-alpha 1] Seat change 5 5 Popular vote 24,976,660 23,588,832[lower-alpha 2] Percentage 49.3% 46.5% Seats up 23 11 Races won 18 16
Results of the elections:      Democratic gain      Democratic hold      Republican gain      Republican hold      No election
Majority Leader before election Mike Mansfield Democratic Elected Majority Leader Mike Mansfield Democratic

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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.

More information Parties, Total ...

Parties						Total
		Democratic	Republican	Conservative	Other
Last elections (1966)		64	36	0	0	100
Before these elections		63	37	0	0	100
Not up		40	26	0	0	66
Up Class 3 (1962→1968)		23	11	0	0	34
Incumbent retired		3	3	—	—	6
	Held by same party	1	2	—	—	3
	Replaced by other party	1 Republican replaced by 1 Democrat 2 Democrats replaced by 2 Republicans		—	—	3
	Result	2	4	0	0	6
Incumbent ran		20	8	—	—	28
	Won re-election	13	7	—	—	20
	Lost re-election	4 Democrats replaced by 4 Republicans		—	—	4
	Lost renomination, but held by same party	2	0	—	—	2
	Lost renomination, and party lost	1 Republican replaced by 1 Democrat 1 Democrat replaced by 1 Republican		—	—	2
	Result	16	12	0	0	28
Total elected		18	16	0	0	34
Net gain/loss		5	5			5
Nationwide vote		24,976,660	23,588,832[lower-alpha 2]	1,139,402	989,058	50,693,952
	Share	49.27%	46.53%	2.25%	1.95%	100%
Result		58[lower-alpha 1]	42	0	0	100

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Source: Clerk of the U.S. House of Representatives^[1]

Fifteen races had a margin of victory under 10%:

Arkansas was the tipping point state with a margin of 18.3%.

Quick Facts Nominee, Party ...

Alaska election

← 1962 1974 →

Nominee Mike Gravel Elmer Rasmuson Ernest Gruening (write-in) Party Democratic Republican Democratic Popular vote 36,527 30,286 14,118 Percentage 45.13% 37.42% 17.44%

Results by state house district Gravel:      40–50%      50–60%      60–70% Gruening:      30–40%

U.S. senator before election Ernest Gruening Democratic Elected U.S. Senator Mike Gravel Democratic

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Democrat Ernest Gruening had served as one of the state's inaugural senators alongside Democrat Bob Bartlett since 1959. He was re-elected in a landslide victory in 1962. In 1968, he was challenged by former Speaker of the Alaska House of Representatives, Mike Gravel, who ran on a campaign of youth.^[3] Gravel upset Gruening in the Democratic primary with just under 53% of the vote to 47% for Gruening.

Gravel faced former Anchorage Mayor Republican Elmer E. Rasmuson in the general election, while Gruening ran a write-in campaign. Gravel won a three-way race with 45% of the vote to 37% for Rasmuson, with incumbent Gruening scoring 17%.

Two months after the election, on December 11, 1968, the other Alaskan senator, Democrat Bob Bartlett, died. Republican Ted Stevens, who lost the Republican primary to Rasmuson for this seat, was then appointed to that other seat.

Quick Facts Nominee, Party ...

Arizona election

← 1962 1974 →

Nominee Barry Goldwater Roy Elson Party Republican Democratic Popular vote 274,607 205,338 Percentage 57.22% 42.78%

County results Goldwater:      50–60%      60–70% Elson:      50–60%      60–70%      70–80%

U.S. senator before election Carl Hayden Democratic Elected U.S. senator Barry Goldwater Republican

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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.

Quick Facts Nominee, Party ...

California election

← 1962 1974 →

Nominee Alan Cranston Max Rafferty Party Democratic Republican Popular vote 3,680,352 3,329,148 Percentage 51.82% 46.87%

County Results Cranston:      40-50%      50–60%      60–70% Rafferty:      40–50%      50–60%      60–70%

U.S. senator before election Thomas Kuchel Republican Elected U.S. senator Alan Cranston Democratic

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California was generally considered to be a Republican stronghold throughout the early 1900s. Until 1959, Republicans controlled most government offices as well as both houses of state government. However, Pat Brown was elected governor in 1958 and ushered in a wave of Democratic success.

Along with California Secretary of State Frank M. Jordan, incumbent U.S. Senator Thomas Kuchel was one of the last Republicans elected from California at the state or U.S. Senate level. Kuchel had been re-elected by a wide margin in 1962, winning every county in the state, and was the Minority Whip for the Republican Party.

However, in 1968 he faced a primary challenge from California Superintendent of Public Instruction Max Rafferty, who ran to the right of moderate Kuchel. In an upset, Rafferty defeated Kuchel in the primary, 50-47%.

In the Democratic primary, former California State Controller Alan Cranston won the primary with 58% of the vote.

Despite Richard Nixon's concurrent win in the presidential election (as well as in the state of California), Cranston defeated Rafferty on election day with just under 52% of the vote, flipping the state's other senate seat to the Democrats. Rafferty took just under 47% of the vote. Cranston would serve until 1993 in the senate.

Quick Facts Nominee, Party ...

Georgia election

← 1962 1974 →

Nominee Herman Talmadge E. Earl Patton Party Democratic Republican Popular vote 885,093 246,865 Percentage 77.51% 22.49%

County results Talmadge:      50–60%      60–70%      70–80%      80–90%      >90% Patton:      50-60%

U.S. senator before election Herman Talmadge Democratic Elected U.S. Senator Herman Talmadge Democratic

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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.

Quick Facts Nominee, Party ...

Illinois election

← 1962 1974 →

Nominee Everett Dirksen William G. Clark Party Republican Democratic Popular vote 2,358,947 2,073,242 Percentage 53.01% 46.59%

County results Dirksen:      50-60%      60-70%      70-80% Clark:      50–60%

U.S. senator before election Everett Dirksen Republican Elected U.S. senator Everett Dirksen Republican

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Incumbent Republican and Minority Leader Everett Dirksen won re-election to his fourth term over William G. Clark (D), the Illinois Attorney General.

Quick Facts Nominee, Party ...

Indiana election

← 1962 1974 →

Nominee Birch Bayh William Ruckelshaus Party Democratic Republican Popular vote 1,060,456 988,571 Percentage 51.65% 48.15%

County results Bayh:      50–60%      60–70% Ruckelshaus:      40–50%      50–60%      60-70%

U.S. senator before election Birch Bayh Democratic Elected U.S. Senator Birch Bayh Democratic

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Incumbent Democrat Birch Bayh was elected in 1962, defeating incumbent Republican Homer E. Capehart by around 11,000 votes. In 1970, he ran for re-election and faced Republican State Representative William Ruckelshaus in the general election.

Ruckelshaus ran a close race but Bayh was ultimately re-elected by a two-point margin. This would actually be Bayh's largest vote percentage in an election to the U.S. Senate. In 1974, he won a narrow majority of the vote over Republican Richard Lugar though he did increase his margin of victory. He was defeated in his re-election bid in 1980 by future Vice President Dan Quayle.

Birch Bayh's son Evan Bayh would also serve in the U.S. Senate from 1999 to 2011.

Quick Facts Nominee, Party ...

1968 United States Senate election in Iowa

← 1962 November 5, 1968 1974 →

Nominee Harold E. Hughes David M. Stanley Party Democratic Republican Popular vote 574,884 568,469 Percentage 50.25% 49.69%

County results Hughes:      50–60%      60–70% Stanley:      50-60%      60-70%      70-80%

U.S. senator before election Bourke B. Hickenlooper Republican Elected U.S. Senator Harold E. Hughes Democratic

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Four-term Republican Bourke B. Hickenlooper retired. Two-term Democratic Governor of Iowa Harold Hughes was elected senator in a close race against Republican state senator David M. Stanley.

Quick Facts Nominee, Party ...

Maryland election

← 1962 1974 →

Nominee Charles Mathias Daniel Brewster George P. Mahoney Party Republican Democratic American Independent Popular vote 541,893 443,667 148,467 Percentage 47.79% 39.12% 13.09%

County results Mathias:      30–40%      40–50%      50–60%      60–70% Brewster:      30–40%      40–50%      50–60%

U.S. senator before election Daniel Brewster Democratic Elected U.S. Senator Charles Mathias Jr. Republican

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Incumbent Democrat Daniel Brewster was originally elected in 1962 over Republican Representative Edward Tylor Miller. He won the Democratic primary and faced Republican Representative Charles Mathias in the general election. However, Democrat George P. Mahoney ran in the election under the American Independent Party. Mahoney, who ran against the Civil Rights movement, had previously been the Democratic nominee for governor in 1966 losing to Spiro Agnew. Hyman A. Pressman ran an independent campaign which allowed Republican Agnew to carry the heavily Democratic state with 49.5% of the vote.

Similarly, Mahoney ran a well-funded campaign in 1968 and Brewster was defeated in the general election. Mathias won just 48% of the vote to 39% for Brewster (and 13% for Mahoney), similarly elected to Agnew. Mathias would nonetheless have no trouble being re-elected in 1974 and 1980 (when he won the city of Baltimore). Mathias is the last Republican to represent Maryland in the U.S. Senate.

Quick Facts Nominee, Party ...

1968 United States Senate election in Missouri

← 1962 November 5, 1968 1974 →

Nominee Thomas Eagleton Thomas B. Curtis Party Democratic Republican Popular vote 887,414 850,544 Percentage 51.06% 48.94%

County results Long:      50–60%      60–70% Curtis:      50–60%      60–70%      70–80%

U.S. senator before election Edward V. Long Democratic Elected U.S. Senator Thomas Eagleton Democratic

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Incumbent U.S. Senator Edward V. Long ran for re-election but faced two primary challengers in Lieutenant Governor Thomas Eagleton and former Assistant Secretary of the Treasury W. True Davis Jr., who each ran strong campaigns. Eagleton won the primary with 37% of the vote.

In the general election, Eagleton faced Republican Representative Thomas B. Curtis and won a close-fought election with 51% of the vote to 49% for Curtis. Eagleton would be re-elected over Curtis again in 1974.