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Republican holds Republican pickups Democratic holds Democratic pickups
The United States Senate election, 1978 was an election for the United States Senate in the middle of Democratic President Jimmy Carter's term. The Democrats lost a net of three seats to the Republicans, leaving the balance of the chamber 58-41.
Republicans took three open seats, including one in Minnesota (a special election was called after the death of Hubert Humphrey (D-MN), as well as in Mississippi and South Dakota. They also defeated five Democratic incumbents: Floyd Haskell (D-CO), Dick Clark (D-IA), William Hathaway (D-ME), Wendell Anderson (D-MN), and Thomas McIntyre (D-NH). These were partially balanced by Democratic defeats of Edward Brooke (R-MA) and Robert Griffin (R-MI), and captures of Republican open seats in Nebraska, New Jersey, and Oklahoma.
[edit] Senate contests in 1978
State |
Incumbent |
Party |
Status |
Opposing Candidates |
Alabama |
John Sparkman |
Democrat |
Retired: Democratic victory, 94.0 - 6.0 |
Howell Heflin (Democrat)
Jerome B. Couch (Independent)
|
Alabama1 |
Maryon Pittman Allen |
Democrat |
Defeated in primary: Democratic victory, 54.9 - 43.2 |
Donald W. Stewart (Democrat)
James D. Martin (Republican)
|
Alaska |
Ted Stevens |
Republican |
Re-elected, 75.6 - 24.1 |
Donald W. Hobbs (Democrat)
|
Arkansas |
Kaneaster Hodges, Jr. |
Democrat |
Retired: Democratic victory, 76.6 - 16.2 - 7.2 |
David H. Pryor (Democrat)
Tom Kelly (Republican)
John J. Black (Independent)
|
Colorado |
Floyd K. Haskell |
Democrat |
Defeated, 58.7 - 40.3 |
William L. Armstrong (Republican)
|
Delaware |
Joseph R. Biden, Jr. |
Democrat |
Re-elected, 58.0 - 41.0 |
James H. Baxter (Republican)
|
Georgia |
Sam Nunn |
Democrat |
Re-elected, 83.1 - 16.9 |
John W. Stokes (Republican)
|
Idaho |
James A. McClure |
Republican |
Re-elected, 68.4 - 31.6 |
Dwight Jensen (Democrat)
|
Illinois |
Charles H. Percy |
Republican |
Re-elected, 53.3 - 45.5 |
Alex Seith (Democrat)
|
Iowa |
Dick Clark |
Democrat |
Defeated, 51.1 - 47.9 |
Roger W. Jepsen (Republican)
|
Kansas |
James B. Pearson |
Republican |
Retired: Republican victory, 53.9 - 42.4 |
Nancy Landon Kassebaum (Republican)
William R. Roy (Democrat)
|
Kentucky |
Walter D. Huddleston |
Democrat |
Re-elected, 61.0 - 36.9 |
Louis Guenthner (Republican)
|
Louisiana |
J. Bennett Johnston |
Democrat |
Re-elected, in Primary |
|
Maine |
William D. Hathaway |
Democrat |
Defeated, 56.6 - 33.9 - 7.4 |
William S. Cohen (Republican)
Hayes E. Gahagan (Independent)
|
Massachusetts |
Edward W. Brooke |
Republican |
Defeated, 55.1 - 44.8 |
Paul E. Tsongas (Democrat)
|
Michigan |
Robert P. Griffin |
Republican |
Defeated, 52.1 - 47.9 |
Carl Levin (Democrat)
|
Minnesota2 |
Muriel Humphrey |
Democrat |
Retired: Republican victory, 61.4 - 34.5 |
David Durenberger (Republican)
Robert E. Short (Democrat)
|
Minnesota |
Wendell Anderson |
Democrat |
Defeated, 56.6 - 40.4 |
Rudy Boschwitz (Republican)
|
Mississippi |
James O. Eastland |
Democrat |
Retired: Republican victory, 45.1 - 31.8 - 22.9 |
Thad Cochran (Republican)
Maurice Dantin (Democrat)
Charles Evers (Independent)
|
Montana |
Paul G. Hatfield |
Democrat |
Defeated in Primary: Democratic victory, 55.7 - 44.3 |
Max Baucus (Democrat)
Larry Williams (Republican)
|
Nebraska |
Carl T. Curtis |
Republican |
Retired: Democratic victory, 67.6 - 32.3 |
J. James Exon (Democrat)
Donald Shasteen (Republican)
|
New Hampshire |
Thomas J. McIntyre |
Democrat |
Defeated, 50.7 - 48.5 |
Gordon J. Humphrey (Republican)
|
New Jersey |
Clifford P. Case |
Republican |
Defeated in primary: Democratic victory, 55.3 - 43.1 |
Bill Bradley (Democrat)
Jeffrey Bell (Republican)
|
New Mexico |
Pete V. Domenici |
Republican |
Re-elected, 53.4 - 46.6 |
Toney Anaya (Democrat)
|
North Carolina |
Jesse Helms |
Republican |
Re-elected, 54.5 - 45.5 |
John Ingram (Democrat)
|
Oklahoma |
Dewey F. Bartlett |
Republican |
Retired: Democratic victory, 65.5 - 32.9 |
David L. Boren (Democrat)
Robert B. Kamm (Republican)
|
Oregon |
Mark O. Hatfield |
Republican |
Re-elected, 61.6 - 38.3 |
Vernon Cook (Democrat)
|
Rhode Island |
Claiborne Pell |
Democrat |
Re-elected, 75.1 - 24.9 |
James G. Reynolds (Republican)
|
South Carolina |
Strom Thurmond |
Republican |
Re-elected, 55.6 - 44.4 |
Charles D. Ravenel (Democrat)
|
South Dakota |
James Abourezk |
Democrat |
Retired: Republican victory, 66.8 - 33.2 |
Larry Pressler (Republican)
Don Barnett (Democrat)
|
Tennessee |
Howard H. Baker, Jr. |
Republican |
Re-elected, 55.5 - 40.3 |
Jane Eskind (Democrat)
|
Texas |
John G. Tower |
Republican |
Re-elected, 49.8 - 49.3 |
Robert Krueger (Democrat)
|
Virginia |
William L. Scott |
Republican |
Retired: Republican victory, 50.2 - 49.8 |
John W. Warner (Republican)
Andrew P. Miller (Democrat)
|
West Virginia |
Jennings Randolph |
Democrat |
Re-elected, 50.5 - 49.5 |
Arch A. Moore (Republican)
|
Wyoming |
Clifford P. Hansen |
Republican |
Retired: Republican victory, 62.2 - 37.8 |
Alan K. Simpson (Republican)
Raymond B. Whitaker (Democrat)
|
1 special election held due to death of James Allen (D-AL) 2 special election held due to death of Hubert Humphrey (D-MN)
[edit] Senate composition before and after elections
[edit] See also