United States Senate elections, 1976

United States Senate elections, 1976

November 2, 1976
33 of the 100 seats in the United States Senate 51 seats needed for a majority
Majority party Minority party   Leader Mike Mansfield (retired) Hugh Scott (retired) Party Democratic Republican Leader since January 3, 1961 September 24, 1969 Leader's seat Montana Pennsylvania Seats before 61 37 Seats after 61 38 Seat change 1 Popular vote 31,790,526 24,562,431 Percentage 53.7% 41.5% Swing 1.5% 1.9% Seats up 21 10 Races won 21 11   Third party Fourth party   Party Independent Conservative (N.Y.) Seats before 1 1 Seats after 1[1] 0 Seat change 1 Popular vote 890,778 311,494 Seats up 1 1 Races won 1 0
Results, with special elections      Democratic gain      Democratic hold      Republican gain      Republican hold      Independent hold
Majority Leader before election Mike Mansfield Democratic Elected Majority Leader Robert Byrd Democratic

The United States Senate elections, 1976 was an election for the United States Senate that coincided with Democratic Jimmy Carter's presidential election and the United States Bicentennial celebration. Although almost half of the seats decided in this election changed parties, Carter's narrow victory did not provide coattails for the Democrats, and the balance of the chamber remained the same.

This was the first election in which the Libertarian Party competed, running candidates in 9 of the 33 contested seats. There were no special elections in this election cycle.

As of 2016 this is the first and so far only time both party leaders retired from the senate in an election cycle since the creation of the positions.

Retirements

The leaders of both parties retired. Democrats had a net gain of one seat from retirements.

Incumbents who lost

Republicans had a net gain of one seat from re-election gains.

Results summary

Parties		Total Seats			Popular Vote
		1974	1976	+/-	Vote	%
	Democratic Party	60	61	1	31,790,526	53.72%
	Republican Party	37	38	1	24,562,431	41.51%
	Independent	1	1		1,173,414	1.98%
	American Party	0	0		204,556	0.35%
	Socialist Worker's Party	0	0		125,528	0.21%
	American Independent Party	0	0		110,921	0.19%
	Libertarian Party	0	0		78,588	0.13%
	Others	1	0	1	1,128,043	1.91%
Total		100	100		59,174,007	100.0%

Source: "Statistics of the Presidential and Congressional Election of November 2, 1976" (PDF). U.S. Government Printing Office. Retrieved February 25, 2013.

Change in Senate composition

Race summaries

Arizona

Arizona election

Nominee Dennis DeConcini Sam Steiger Party Democratic Republican Popular vote 400,334 321,236 Percentage 54.0% 43.3%

U.S. Senate election results map. Blue denotes counties won by DeConcini. Red denotes those won by Steiger.

U.S. Senator before election Paul Fannin Republican Elected U.S. Senator Dennis DeConcini Democratic

Incumbent Republican Paul Fannin decided to retire instead of seeking a third term. Democratic attorney and businessman Dennis DeConcini won the open seat over

• Sam Steiger, U.S. Congressman of Arizona's 3rd congressional district.

California

California election

Nominee S. I. Hayakawa John V. Tunney Party Republican Democratic Popular vote 3,748,973 3,502,862 Percentage 50.1% 46.9%

U.S. Senator before election John V. Tunney Democratic Elected U.S. Senator S. I. Hayakawa Republican

Incumbent Democrat John Tunney ran for re-election to a second term, but was defeated by Republican Sam Hayakawa, President emeritus of San Francisco State University.

Connecticut

Connecticut election

Nominee Lowell P. Weicker, Jr. Gloria Schaffer Party Republican Democratic Popular vote 785,683 561,018 Percentage 57.7% 41.2%

County results

U.S. Senator before election Lowell P. Weicker, Jr. Republican Elected U.S. Senator Lowell P. Weicker, Jr. Republican

Incumbent Republican Lowell Weicker won re-election to a second term over Gloria Schaffer, Connecticut Secretary of State^[3]

Delaware

Delaware election

Nominee Bill Roth Thomas Maloney Party Republican Democratic Popular vote 125,454 98,042 Percentage 55.8% 43.6%

U.S. Senator before election Bill Roth Republican Elected U.S. Senator Bill Roth Republican

Incumbent Republican Bill Roth won reelection to a second term over Thomas Maloney, Mayor of Wilmington^[4]

Florida

Florida election

Nominee Lawton Chiles John Grady Party Democratic Republican Popular vote 1,799,518 1,057,886 Percentage 63.0% 37.0%

U.S. Senator before election Lawton Chiles Democratic Elected U.S. Senator Lawton Chiles Democratic

Incumbent Democrat Lawton Chiles won re-election to a second term over John Grady, Mayor of Belle Glade^[5]

Hawaii

Hawaii election

Nominee Spark Matsunaga William Quinn Party Democratic Republican Popular vote 162,305 122,724 Percentage 53.7% 40.6%

County results

U.S. Senator before election Hiram Fong Republican Elected U.S. Senator Spark Matsunaga Democratic

Incumbent Republican Hiram Fong decided to retire instead of seeking re-election to a fourth term. Democrat Spark Matsunaga won the open seat over Republican William Quinn, Former Governor of Hawaii.

Indiana

Indiana election

Nominee Richard Lugar Vance Hartke Party Republican Democratic Popular vote 1,275,833 868,522 Percentage 59.0% 40.2%

U.S. Senator before election Vance Hartke Democratic Elected U.S. Senator Richard Lugar Republican

Incumbent Democrat Vance Hartke ran for re-election to a fourth term, but was defeated by Republican challenger Richard Lugar, Mayor of Indianapolis.

Maine

Maine election

Nominee Edmund Muskie Robert A. G. Monks Party Democratic Republican Popular vote 292,704 193,489 Percentage 60.2% 39.8%

U.S. Senator before election Edmund Muskie Democratic Elected U.S. Senator Edmund Muskie Democratic

Incumbent Democrat Edmund Muskie won re-election to a fourth term over Republican Robert A. G. Monks, shareholder activist.

Maryland

Maryland election

Nominee Paul Sarbanes John Glenn Beall, Jr. Party Democratic Republican Popular vote 772,101 530,439 Percentage 56.6% 38.9%

U.S. Senator before election John Glenn Beall, Jr. Republican Elected U.S. Senator Paul Sarbanes Democratic

Incumbent Republican Glenn Beall Jr. ran for re-election to a second term, but was defeated by Democratic challenger Paul Sarbanes, member of the U.S. House of Representatives.

Massachusetts

Massachusetts election

Nominee Ted Kennedy Michael Robertson Party Democratic Republican Popular vote 1,726,657 722,641 Percentage 69.3% 29.0%

County results

U.S. Senator before election Ted Kennedy Democratic Elected U.S. Senator Ted Kennedy Democratic

Incumbent Democrat Ted Kennedy won re-election to his third full term over Republican businessman, Michael Robertson^[8]

Michigan

Michigan election

Nominee Don Riegle Marvin Esch Party Democratic Republican Popular vote 1,831,031 1,635,087 Percentage 52.5% 46.9%

U.S. Senator before election Philip Hart Democratic Elected U.S. Senator Don Riegle Democratic

Incumbent Democrat Philip Hart decided to retire instead of seeking a fourth term. Democrat Don Riegle, member of the U.S. House of Representatives, won the open seat over fellow congressman Republican

• Marvin Esch.

Minnesota

Minnesota election

Nominee Hubert Humphrey Jerry Brekke Party Democratic Republican Popular vote 1,290,736 478,602 Percentage 67.5% 25.0%   Nominee Paul Helm Party American Popular vote 125,612 Percentage 6.6%

U.S. Senator before election Hubert Humphrey Democratic Elected U.S. Senator Hubert Humphrey Democratic

Incumbent Democrat Hubert Humphrey won re-election to a fifth term over Republican Gerald Brekke, college professor^[9]

Mississippi

Mississippi election

Nominee John C. Stennis Party Democratic Popular vote 554,433 Percentage 100.0%

U.S. Senator before election John C. Stennis Democratic Elected U.S. Senator John C. Stennis Democratic

Incumbent Democrat John C. Stennis won re-election to his sixth term.

Missouri

Missouri election

Nominee John Danforth Warren E. Hearnes Party Republican Democratic Popular vote 1,090,067 813,571 Percentage 56.9% 42.5%

U.S. Senator before election Stuart Symington Democratic Elected U.S. Senator John Danforth Republican

Incumbent Democrat Stuart Symington decided to retire, instead of seeking a fifth term. Republican John Danforth, Attorney General of Missouri, won the open seat, defeating Democrat Warren Hearnes, former Governor of Missouri. (Jerry Litton had won the Democratic nomination earlier, but was killed in a plane crash, and Hearnes was chosen by the party committee.)

Montana

Montana election

Nominee John Melcher Stanley Burger Party Democratic Republican Popular vote 206,232 115,213 Percentage 64.16% 35.84%

U.S. Senator before election Mike Mansfield Democratic Elected U.S. Senator John Melcher Democratic

Rather than seek a fifth term, Democratic incumbent Mike Mansfield opted to retire, creating an open seat. United States Congressman John Melcher, who had represented Montana's 2nd congressional district from 1969 to 1977, won the Democratic nomination and defeated Stanley C. Burger, the Republican nominee and former Executive Officer of the Montana Farm Bureau Federation, by a wide margin in the general election.

Nebraska

Nebraska election

Nominee Edward Zorinsky John Y. McCollister Party Democratic Republican Popular vote 313,805 279,284 Percentage 52.89% 47.07%

U.S. Senator before election Roman Hruska Republican Elected U.S. Senator Edward Zorinsky Democratic

Incumbent Republican Roman Hruska decided to retire instead of seeking another term. Democrat Edward Zorinsky, Mayor of Omaha, won the open seat over Republican John Y. McCollister, U.S. Congressman of Nebraska's 2nd congressional district.

Nevada

Nevada election

Nominee Howard Cannon David Towell Party Democratic Republican Popular vote 127,214 63,471 Percentage 63.0% 31.4%

U.S. Senator before election Howard Cannon Democratic Elected U.S. Senator Howard Cannon Democratic

Incumbent Democrat Howard Cannon won re-election to a fourth term over Republican David Towell, U.S. Representative from Nevada's At-large congressional district.

In the Senate, Cannon was known as a moderate in the Democratic Party. He served as chairman of several committees, including the rules committee and the inaugural arrangements committee. Cannon was nearly defeated for re-election in 1964 by Republican Lieutenant Governor Paul Laxalt in one of the closest election in history. However, he became more popular over the next few years and won re-election in 1970 with nearly 58% of the vote. In 1976, he faced U.S. Representative David Towell, who served just one term in the U.S. House of Representatives before running for the U.S. Senate. Cannon won re-election with 63% of the vote, one of his best election performances of his career. He won every county in the state, except for Eureka County, which Towell won with just 51% of the vote.

New Jersey

New Mexico

New Mexico election

Nominee Harrison Schmitt Joseph Montoya Party Republican Democratic Popular vote 234,681 176,382 Percentage 56.8% 42.7%

County results

U.S. Senator before election Joseph Montoya Democratic Elected U.S. Senator Harrison Schmitt Republican

Incumbent Democrat Joseph Montoya ran for re-election to a third term, but was defeated by Republican former Astronaut Harrison Schmitt.

New York

New York election

Nominee Pat Moynihan James Buckley Party Democratic Republican Popular vote 3,422,594 2,836,633 Percentage 54.1% 44.9%

County results

U.S. Senator before election James Buckley Republican Elected U.S. Senator Pat Moynihan Democratic

Incumbent Conservative James Buckley ran for re-election to a second term as a Republican, but was defeated by Pat Moynihan.

North Dakota

Incumbent North Dakota Democratic NPL Party Democrat Quentin Burdick, sought and received re-election to his fourth term to the United States Senate, defeating Republican candidate Robert Stroup.^[2] Only Burdick filed as a Dem-NPLer, and the endorsed Republican candidate was Robert Stroup, as state senator from Hazen, North Dakota. Burdick and Stroup won the primary elections for their respective parties. One independent candidate, Clarence Haggard, also filed before the deadline under the American Party.

Ohio

Ohio election

Nominee Howard Metzenbaum Robert Taft, Jr. Party Democratic Republican Popular vote 1,941,113 1,823,774 Percentage 49.51% 46.52%

U.S. Senator before election Robert Taft, Jr. Republican Elected U.S. Senator Howard Metzenbaum Democratic

Incumbent Republican Robert Taft, Jr. ran for re-election to second term, but was defeated by Democratic former Senator Howard Metzenbaum.

Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania election

Nominee John Heinz Bill Green Party Republican Democratic Popular vote 2,381,891 2,126,977 Percentage 52.4% 46.8%

U.S. Senator before election Hugh Scott Republican Elected U.S. Senator John Heinz Republican

Incumbent Republican and Minority Leader Hugh Scott decided to retire. Republican John Heinz won the open seat over Democrat Bill Green, United States Representative^[16][2]

In December 1975, U.S. senator Hugh Scott announced that he would not seek re-election in 1976 at the age of 75 after serving in Congress for 33 years. Scott listed personal reasons and several "well-qualified potential candidates" for the seat among the reasons of his decision to retire. Other reasons, including his support for Richard Nixon and accusations that he had illegally obtained contributions from Gulf Oil were alleged to have contributed to the decision.^[17]

Heinz was the victor in all but nine counties, defeating opponent William Green, who had a 300,000 vote advantage in his native Philadelphia area. Heinz and Green spend $2.5 million and $900,000, respectively, during the ten-month campaign. Much of the money Heinz spent on his campaign was his own, leading to accusations from Green that he was "buying the seat". Heinz replied to this by claiming that the spending was necessary to overcome the Democratic voter registration advantage.^[20]

Rhode Island

Rhode Island election

Nominee John Chafee Richard Lorber Party Republican Democratic Popular vote 230,329 167,665 Percentage 57.7% 42.0%

County results

U.S. Senator before election John O. Pastore Democratic Elected U.S. Senator John Chafee Republican

Incumbent Democrat John O. Pastore did not seek re-election. Republican John Chafee won the seat, defeating Democrat Richard P. Lorber.

Tennessee

U.S. election in Tennessee election

Nominee James Sasser Bill Brock Party Democratic Republican Popular vote 751,180 673,231 Percentage 52.46% 47.01%

U.S. Senator before election Bill Brock Republican Elected U.S. Senator James Sasser Democratic

Incumbent Republican Bill Brock ran for re-election to a second term, but was defeated by Democratic challenger James Sasser.

Texas

Texas election

Nominee Lloyd Bentsen Alan Steelman Party Democratic Republican Popular vote 2,199,956 1,636,370 Percentage 56.8% 42.2%

U.S. Senator before election Lloyd Bentsen Democratic Elected U.S. Senator Lloyd Bentsen Democratic

Incumbent Democrat Lloyd Bentsen won re-election to a second term over Republican Alan Steelman, U.S. Representative from Texas's 5th district.

Utah

Utah election

Nominee Orrin Hatch Frank Moss Party Republican Democratic Popular vote 290,221 223,948 Percentage 55.59% 42.89%

U.S. Senator before election Frank Moss Democratic Elected U.S. Senator Orrin Hatch Republican

Incumbent Democrat Frank Moss ran for re-election to a fourth term but was defeated by his Republican opponent Orrin Hatch.

Vermont

Vermont election

November 2, 1976 (1976-11-02)

Nominee Robert Stafford Thomas P. Salmon Party Republican Democratic Popular vote 94,481 85,682 Percentage 50.0% 45.4%

U.S. Senator before election Robert Stafford Republican Elected U.S. Senator Robert Stafford Republican

Incumbent Republican Robert Stafford successfully ran for re-election to another term in the United States Senate, defeating Democratic candidate Governor Thomas P. Salmon.

Virginia

Virginia election

Turnout	47.0%[26]
Nominee Harry F. Byrd, Jr. Elmo Zumwalt Party Independent Democratic Popular vote 890,778 596,009 Percentage 57.2% 38.3%
U.S. Senate election results map. Gray denotes counties/districts won by Byrd. Blue denotes those won by Zumwalt. Red denotes those won by Perper.
U.S. Senator before election Harry F. Byrd, Jr. Independent Elected U.S. Senator Harry F. Byrd, Jr. Independent

Incumbent Independent Harry F. Byrd, Jr. was re-elected to a second term over retired Admiral Elmo Zumwalt and state legislator Martin H. Perper.

Washington

West Virginia

Wisconsin

Wyoming

See also

• United States elections, 1976
  • United States gubernatorial elections, 1976
  • United States presidential election, 1976
  • United States House of Representatives elections, 1976
• 94th United States Congress
• 95th United States Congress

References