1974 United States Senate elections

Template:Short description Template:Use mdy dates The 1974 United States Senate elections were held on November 5, with the 34 seats of Class 3 contested in regular elections. They occurred in the wake of the Watergate scandal, Richard M. Nixon's resignation from the presidency, and Gerald Ford's subsequent pardon of Nixon. Economic issues, specifically inflation and stagnation, were also a factor that contributed to Republican losses. As an immediate result of the November 1974 elections, Democrats made a net gain of three seats from the Republicans, as they defeated Republican incumbents in Colorado and Kentucky and picked up open seats in Florida and Vermont, while Republicans won the open seat in Nevada. Following the elections, at the beginning of the 94th U.S. Congress, the Democratic caucus controlled 60 seats (as well as one independent), and the Republican caucus controlled 38 seats (as well as one Conservative).

Democrats gained an additional seat, bringing the net pick-up to four seats, in 1975, when Democrat John A. Durkin won a disputed election in New Hampshire that was unintentionally held after the 1974 election resulted in two recounts and an extended dispute in the Senate. Durkin's Senate term began in September 1975, following his victory in that election. since 2023Template:Dated maintenance category (articles), this is the most recent election in which a Democrat has been elected Senator from Idaho.

Several other Republican incumbents won very close races; Milton Young of North Dakota won reelection against Democrat William L. Guy by only 186 votes and Henry Bellmon of Oklahoma won reelection against Democrat Ed Edmondson by half a percent of the vote. Bob Dole of Kansas survived the closest election of his career against Democratic Rep. William Roy, a race undoubtedly made close due to Dole's close association with Nixon as chairman of the Republican National Committee. It was the closest the Democrats have come to winning a Senate election in Kansas since George McGill won re-election in 1932.

Results summary

↓

style="background:Template:Party color; width:61%" | 61	style="background:Template:Party color; width:1%" | 1	style="background:Template:Party color; width:1%" | 1	style="background:Template:Party color; width:37%" | 37
Democratic	I	C	Republican

Parties		style="background-color:Template:Party color" |	style="background-color:Template:Party color" |	style="background-color:Template:Party color" |	style="background-color:Template:Party color" |	style="background-color:Template:Party color" |	Total
		Democratic	Republican	Conservative	Independent	Other
Last elections (1972)		style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | 56	42	1	1	0	100
Before these elections		style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | 57	41	1	1	0	100
Not up		style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | 41	23	1	1	—	66
Up Class 3 (1968→1974)		style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | 20	14	0	0	—	34
Incumbent retired		3	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | 4	—	—	—	7
	Held by same party	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | 2	1	—	—	—	3
	Replaced by other party	colspan=2 style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | Decrease 3 Republicans replaced by Increase 3 DemocratsTemplate:Efn Decrease 1 Democrat replaced by Increase 1 Republican	—	—	—	4
	Result	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | 5	2	0	0	0	7
Incumbent ran		style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | 17Template:Efn	10	—	—	—	27
	Won re-election	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | 15	8	—	—	—	23
	Lost re-election	colspan=2 style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | Decrease 2 Republicans replaced by Increase 2 Democrats	—	—	—	2
	Lost renomination, but held by same party	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | 2	0	—	—	—	2
	Result	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | 19	8	0	0	0	27
Total elected		style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | 24	10	0	0	0	34
Net gain/loss		style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | Increase 4	Decrease 4	Steady	Steady	Steady	4
Nationwide vote		style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | 22,544,761	16,145,793Template:Efn	822,584	199,108	1,098,146	40,810,392
	Share	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | 55.24%	39.56%	2.02%	0.49%	2.69%	100%
Result		style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | 61	37	1	1	0	100

Source: Office of the Clerk of the United States House of Representatives

Gains, losses, and holds

Retirements

Four Republicans and three Democrats retired instead of seeking re-election.

State	Senator	Replaced by
Florida	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" |	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" |
Iowa	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" |	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" |
Nevada	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" |	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" |
New Hampshire (later voided)	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" |	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" |
North Carolina	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" |	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" |
Utah	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" |	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" |
Vermont	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" |	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" |

Defeats

Two Republicans and two Democrats sought re-election but lost in the primary or general election.

State	Senator	Replaced by
Arkansas	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" |	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" |
Colorado	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" |	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" |
Kentucky	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" |	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" |
Ohio	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" |	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" |

Post-election changes

One Republican appointee did not seek to finish the term following the contested election and one Democrat was elected on September 16, 1975.

State	Senator	Replaced by
New Hampshire (Class 3)	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" |	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" |

Change in composition

Before the elections

After the January 4, 1974 appointment in Ohio.

style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | D1	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | D2	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | D3	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | D4	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | D5	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | D6	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | D7	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | D8	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | D9	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | D10
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Template:Party shading/Democratic/active | D40 Ark. Ran	Template:Party shading/Democratic/active | D39 Alaska Ran	Template:Party shading/Democratic/active | D38 Ala. Ran	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | D37	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | D36	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | D35	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | D34	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | D33	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | D32	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | D31
Template:Party shading/Democratic/active | D41 Calif. Ran	Template:Party shading/Democratic/active | D42 Conn. Ran	Template:Party shading/Democratic/active | D43 Ga. Ran	Template:Party shading/Democratic/active | D44 Hawaii Ran	Template:Party shading/Democratic/active | D45 Idaho Ran	Template:Party shading/Democratic/active | D46 Ill. Ran	Template:Party shading/Democratic/active | D47 Ind. Ran	Template:Party shading/Democratic/active | D48 Iowa Retired	Template:Party shading/Democratic/active | D49 La. Ran	Template:Party shading/Democratic/active | D50 Mo. Ran
Majority →									rowspan=2 Template:Party shading/Democratic/active | D51 Nev. Retired
Template:Party shading/Republican/active | R41 Vt. Retired	Template:Party shading/Conservative (New York) | C1	Template:Party shading/Independent | I1	Template:Party shading/Democratic/active | D57 Wisc. Ran	Template:Party shading/Democratic/active | D56 Wash. Ran	Template:Party shading/Democratic/active | D55 S.D. Ran	Template:Party shading/Democratic/active | D54 S.C. Ran	Template:Party shading/Democratic/active | D53 Ohio Ran	Template:Party shading/Democratic/active | D52 N.C. Retired
Template:Party shading/Republican/active | R40 Utah Retired	Template:Party shading/Republican/active | R39 Pa. Ran	Template:Party shading/Republican/active | R38 Ore. Ran	Template:Party shading/Republican/active | R37 Okla. Ran	Template:Party shading/Republican/active | R36 N.D. Ran	Template:Party shading/Republican/active | R35 N.Y. Ran	Template:Party shading/Republican/active | R34 N.H. Retired	Template:Party shading/Republican/active | R33 Md. Ran	Template:Party shading/Republican/active | R32 Ky. Ran	Template:Party shading/Republican/active | R31 Kan. Ran
style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | R21	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | R22	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | R23	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | R24	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | R25	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | R26	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | R27	Template:Party shading/Republican/active | R28 Ariz. Ran	Template:Party shading/Republican/active | R29 Colo. Ran	Template:Party shading/Republican/active | R30 Fla. Ran
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style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | R1	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | R2	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | R3	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | R4	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | R5	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | R6	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | R7	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | R8	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | R9	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | R10

After the general elections

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style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | D21	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | D22	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | D23	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | D24	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | D25	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | D26	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | D27	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | D28	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | D29	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | D30
Template:Party shading/Democratic/active | D40 Ark. Hold	Template:Party shading/Democratic/active | D39 Alaska Re-elected	Template:Party shading/Democratic/active | D38 Ala. Re-elected	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | D37	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | D36	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | D35	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | D34	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | D33	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | D32	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | D31
Template:Party shading/Democratic/active | D41 Calif. Re-elected	Template:Party shading/Democratic/active | D42 Conn. Re-elected	Template:Party shading/Democratic/active | D43 Ga. Re-elected	Template:Party shading/Democratic/active | D44 Hawaii Re-elected	Template:Party shading/Democratic/active | D45 Idaho Re-elected	Template:Party shading/Democratic/active | D46 Ill. Re-elected	Template:Party shading/Democratic/active | D47 Ind. Re-elected	Template:Party shading/Democratic/active | D48 Iowa Hold	Template:Party shading/Democratic/active | D49 La. Re-elected	Template:Party shading/Democratic/active | D50 Mo. Re-elected
Majority →									rowspan=2 Template:Party shading/Democratic/active | D51 N.C. Hold
Template:Party shading/Democratic/active | D60 Vt. Gain	Template:Party shading/Democratic/active | D59 Ky. Gain	Template:Party shading/Democratic/active | D58 Fla. Gain	Template:Party shading/Democratic/active | D57 Colo. Gain	Template:Party shading/Democratic/active | D56 Wash. Re-elected	Template:Party shading/Democratic/active | D55 S.D. Re-elected	Template:Party shading/Democratic/active | D54 S.C. Re-elected	Template:Party shading/Democratic/active | D53 Ohio Hold	Template:Party shading/Democratic/active | D52 N.D. Re-elected
Template:Party shading/Independent | I1	Vacant N.H. Annulled	Template:Party shading/Conservative (New York) | C1	Template:Party shading/Republican/active | R37 Nev. Gain	Template:Party shading/Republican/active | R36 Wisc. Re-elected	Template:Party shading/Republican/active | R35 Utah Hold	Template:Party shading/Republican/active | R34 Pa. Re-elected	Template:Party shading/Republican/active | R33 Ore. Re-elected	Template:Party shading/Republican/active | R32 Okla. Re-elected	Template:Party shading/Republican/active | R31 N.Y. Re-elected
style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | R21	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | R22	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | R23	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | R24	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | R25	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | R26	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | R27	Template:Party shading/Republican/active | R28 Ariz. Re-elected	Template:Party shading/Republican/active | R29 Kan. Re-elected	Template:Party shading/Republican/active | R30 Md. Re-elected
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Beginning of the next Congress

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style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | D21	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | D22	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | D23	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | D24	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | D25	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | D26	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | D27	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | D28	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | D29	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | D30
style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | D40	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | D39	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | D38	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | D37	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | D36	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | D35	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | D34	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | D33	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | D32	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | D31
style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | D41	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | D42	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | D43	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | D44	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | D45	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | D46	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | D47	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | D48	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | D49	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | D50
Majority →									rowspan=2 style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | D51
style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | D60	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | D59	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | D58	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | D57	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | D56	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | D55	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | D54	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | D53	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | D52
Template:Party shading/Democratic/active | D61 N.H. Gain	Template:Party shading/Independent | I1	Template:Party shading/Conservative (New York) | C1	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | R37	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | R36	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | R35	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | R34	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | R33	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | R32	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | R31
style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | R21	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | R22	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | R23	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | R24	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | R25	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | R26	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | R27	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | R28	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | R29	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | R30
style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | R20	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | R19	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | R18	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | R17	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | R16	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | R15	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | R14	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | R13	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | R12	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | R11
style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | R1	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | R2	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | R3	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | R4	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | R5	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | R6	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | R7	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | R8	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | R9	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | R10

Key

align=center Template:Party shading/Conservative (New York) | C# [[Conservative Party of New York State|Template:Party shortname]] align=center style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | D# Democratic align=center style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | R# Republican align=center Template:Party shading/Independent | I# Independent

Race summary

Elections leading to the next Congress

In these general elections, the winners were elected for the term beginning January 3, 1975; ordered by state.

All of the elections involved the Class 3 seats.

State (linked to summaries below)	Incumbent			Result	Candidates
	Senator	Party	Electoral history
Alabama		style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | Democratic	1968	Incumbent re-elected.	Template:Plainlist
Alaska		style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | Democratic	1968	Incumbent re-elected.	Template:Plainlist
Arizona		style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | Republican	1952 1958 1964 (retired) 1968	Incumbent re-elected.	Template:Plainlist
Arkansas		style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | Democratic	1944 1950 1956 1962 1968	Template:Party shading/Democratic/Hold | Incumbent lost renomination. Democratic hold.	Template:Plainlist
California		style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | Democratic	1968	Incumbent re-elected.	Template:Plainlist
Colorado		style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | Republican	1968	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | Incumbent lost re-election. Democratic gain.	Template:Plainlist
Connecticut		style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | Democratic	1962 1968	Incumbent re-elected.	Template:Plainlist
Florida		style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | Republican	1968	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | Incumbent retired. Democratic gain. Incumbent resigned December 31, 1974 to give successor preferential seniority. Winner appointed January 1, 1975.	Template:Plainlist
Georgia		style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | Democratic	1956 1962 1968	Incumbent re-elected.	Template:Plainlist
Hawaii		style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | Democratic	1962 1968	Incumbent re-elected.	Template:Plainlist
Idaho		style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | Democratic	1956 1962 1968	Incumbent re-elected.	Template:Plainlist
Illinois		style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | Democratic	1970 (special)	Incumbent re-elected.	Template:Plainlist
Indiana		style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | Democratic	1962 1968	Incumbent re-elected.	Template:Plainlist
Iowa		style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | Democratic	1968	Template:Party shading/Democratic/Hold | Incumbent retired. Democratic hold.	Template:Plainlist
Kansas		style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | Republican	1968	Incumbent re-elected.	Template:Plainlist
Kentucky		style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | Republican	1968	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | Incumbent lost re-election. Democratic gain. Incumbent resigned December 27, 1974 to give successor preferential seniority. Winner appointed December 28, 1974.	Template:Plainlist
Louisiana		style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | Democratic	1948 (special) 1950 1956 1962 1968	Incumbent re-elected.	Template:Plainlist
Maryland		style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | Republican	1968	Incumbent re-elected.	Template:Plainlist
Missouri		style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | Democratic	1968	Incumbent re-elected.	Template:Plainlist
Nevada		style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | Democratic	1954 (special) 1956 1962 1968	style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | Incumbent retired. Republican gain. Incumbent resigned December 17, 1974 to give successor preferential seniority. Winner appointed December 18, 1974.	Template:Plainlist
New Hampshire		style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | Republican	1954 (special) 1956 1962 1968	Template:Party shading/Hold | Incumbent retired. Republican hold. Incumbent resigned December 31, 1974 and successor was appointed the same day. Election was later contested and voided.	Template:Plainlist
New York		style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | Republican	1956 1962 1968	Incumbent re-elected.	Template:Plainlist
North Carolina		style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | Democratic	1954 (special) 1954 (appointed) 1956 1962 1968	Template:Party shading/Democratic/Hold | Incumbent retired. Democratic hold.	Template:Plainlist
North Dakota		style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | Republican	1945 (appointed) 1946 (special) 1950 1956 1962 1968	Incumbent re-elected.	Template:Plainlist
Ohio		style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | Democratic	1974 (appointed)	Template:Party shading/Democratic/Hold | Interim appointee lost nomination. Democratic hold. Incumbent resigned December 23, 1974 to give successor preferential seniority. Winner appointed December 24, 1974.	Template:Plainlist
Oklahoma		style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | Republican	1968	Incumbent re-elected.	Template:Plainlist
Oregon		style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | Republican	1968	Incumbent re-elected.	Template:Plainlist
Pennsylvania		style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | Republican	1968	Incumbent re-elected.	Template:Plainlist
South Carolina		style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | Democratic	1966 (special) 1968	Incumbent re-elected.	Template:Plainlist
South Dakota		style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | Democratic	1962 1968	Incumbent re-elected.	Template:Plainlist
Utah		style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | Republican	1950 1956 1962 1968	Template:Party shading/Republican/Hold | Incumbent retired. Republican hold. Incumbent resigned December 20, 1974 to give successor preferential seniority. Winner appointed December 21, 1974.	Template:Plainlist
Vermont		style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | Republican	1940 (special) 1944 1950 1956 1962 1968	style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | Incumbent retired. Democratic gain.	Template:Plainlist
Washington		style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | Democratic	1944 1944 (appointed) 1950 1956 1962 1968	Incumbent re-elected.	Template:Plainlist
Wisconsin		style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | Democratic	1962 1968	Incumbent re-elected.	Template:Plainlist

Closest races

In fourteen races the margin of victory was under 10%.

State	Party of winner	Margin
New Hampshire	data-sort-value=0 Template:Party shading/Independent | Republican (later overturned)	0.0009%
North Dakota	data-sort-value=1 style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | Republican	0.07%
Nevada	data-sort-value=.5 style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | Republican (flip)	0.37%
Oklahoma	data-sort-value=1 style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | Republican	0.48%
Kansas	data-sort-value=1 style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | Republican	1.70%
Vermont	data-sort-value=-.5 style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | Democratic (flip)	3.09%
Florida	data-sort-value=-.5 style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | Democratic (flip)	3.32%
Indiana	data-sort-value=-1 style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | Democratic	4.29%
Iowa	data-sort-value=-1 style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | Democratic	4.76%
Utah	data-sort-value=1 style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | Republican	5.92%
South Dakota	data-sort-value=-1 style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | Democratic	6.08%
New York	data-sort-value=1 style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | Republican	7.09%
Pennsylvania	data-sort-value=1 style="background-color:Template:Republican Party (US)/meta/shading" | Republican	7.11%
Kentucky	data-sort-value=-.5 style="color:black;background-color:Template:Democratic Party (US)/meta/shading" | Democratic (flip)	9.48%

Illinois was the tipping point state with a margin of 25%.

Alabama

Democratic United States senator James Allen won re-election to a second term, faced no Republican opponent in the general election, defeating Prohibition Party nominee Alvin Abercrombie.

Template:Election box majority no change

1974 United States Senate election in Alabama Results

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
		James Allen (Incumbent)		95.84
		Alvin Abercrombie		4.16
Turnout			523,290
	hold

Alaska

Incumbent Democrat Mike Gravel won re-election to a second term over Republican State Senator Clyde "C.R." Lewis.

Template:Election box majority no change

1974 U.S. Senate election in Alaska

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
		Mike Gravel (Incumbent)		58.28
		C. R. Lewis		41.72
Turnout			93,275
	hold

Arizona

Incumbent Republican Barry Goldwater decided to run for reelection to a fourth term, after returning to the U.S. Senate in 1968 following his failed Presidential run in 1964 against Lyndon B. Johnson. Goldwater defeated Democratic Party nominee philanthropist Jonathan Marshall in the general election.

Democratic primary election

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
		'Jonathan Marshall', philanthropist		53.55
		George Oglesby, attorney		24.51
		William Mathews Feighan		21.93
Total votes				100.00

Template:Election box majority no change

1974 United States Senate election in Arizona

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
		Barry Goldwater (Incumbent)		58.26
		Jonathan Marshall		41.74
Turnout			549,919
	hold

Arkansas

Incumbent Democrat J. William Fulbright lost renomination to Governor of Arkansas Dale Bumpers. Bumpers then won the general election easily.

1974 U.S. Senate Democratic primary election in Arkansas, May 28, 1974

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
		Dale Bumpers		65.04
		J. William Fulbright (Incumbent)		34.96
Turnout				30.44
Total votes

Template:Election box winning candidate with party link

1974 U.S. Senate general election in Arkansas

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
		John H. Jones	82,026	15.10
Majority			379,030	69.80
Total votes			93,275	100.00
Turnout			543,082	28.24
	hold		Swing

California

Incumbent Democrat Alan Cranston won re-election to a second term over Republican H. L. Richardson, California State Senator.

Template:Election box majority no change

1974 United States Senate election in California Results

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
		Alan Cranston (Incumbent)		60.54
		H. L. Richardson		36.20
		Jack McCoy		1.67
		Gayle M. Justice		1.59
Turnout			6,011,154
	hold

Colorado

Incumbent Republican Peter H. Dominick ran for re-election to a third term, but was defeated by Democratic challenger Gary Hart, the campaign manager for George McGovern in 1972.

Template:Election box candidate no changeTemplate:Election box majority no change

1974 United States Senate election in Colorado Results

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
		Gary Hart		57.23
		Peter H. Dominick (Incumbent)		39.50
	Independent	John M. King		1.96
		Joseph Fred Hyskell		1.02
		Henry John Olshaw		0.29
Turnout			824,171
	gain from

Connecticut

Incumbent Democrat Abraham Ribicoff won re-election to a third term over Republican challenger James Brannen III.

Template:Election box candidate no changeTemplate:Election box candidate no changeTemplate:Election box majority no change

1974 United States Senate election in Connecticut Results

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
		Abraham A. Ribicoff (Incumbent)		63.67
		James H. Brannen III		34.29
		Norman L. Rochon		0.25
Turnout			1,084,918
	hold

Florida

Incumbent Republican Edward Gurney declined to seek a second term after being indicted for taking bribes in return for his influence with the Federal Housing Administration.

The primary for the Republican nomination pitted Eckerd drug store owner Jack Eckerd against Florida Public Service Commissioner Paula Hawkins. Eckerd won handily, receiving approximately 67.5% of the vote.

Republican primary results

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
		Jack Eckerd		67.49
		Paula Hawkins		32.52
Total votes				100.00

The Democratic primary, however, was a crowded field with eleven candidates vying for the nomination. Because no candidate received a majority of the votes, U.S. Representative Bill Gunter and Secretary of State of Florida Richard Stone advanced to a run-off election. Stone won by a small margin of 1.68%.

Democratic primary results

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
		Richard Stone		29.80
		Bill Gunter		19.85
		Richard A. Pettigrew		18.51
		Mallory Horne		11.44
		Glenn W. Turner		6.48
		George Balmer		3.08
		Burton Young		2.93
		Bob Brewster		2.51
		David B. Higginbottom		1.64
		Duaine E. Macon		1.89
Total votes				100.00

Democratic primary runoff results

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
		Richard Stone		50.84
		Bill Gunter		49.16
Total votes				100.00

Thus, Eckerd and Stone faced off in the general election. John Grady, a family physician and member of George Wallace's American Independent Party, performed exceptionally well for a third party candidate. Grady may have split the conservative vote, allowing for Stone to win. On election day, Stone received 43.38% of the vote, Eckerd garnered 40.91% of the vote, and Grady acquired 15.7% of the vote.

Template:Election box majority no change

General election

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
		Richard Stone		43.38%
		Jack Eckerd		40.91
		John Grady		15.70
	Independent	Jim Fair		0.01
	Independent	Henry J. Matthew		<0.01
	Independent	Hortense L. Arvan		<0.01
	Independent	Timothy L. "Tim" Adams		<0.01
Turnout			1,800,539
	gain from

Georgia

Incumbent Democrat Herman Talmadge won re-election to a fourth term over Republican challenger Jerry Johnson.

Template:Election box candidate no changeTemplate:Election box majority no change

1974 United States Senate election in Georgia Results

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
		Herman Talmadge (Incumbent)		71.74
		Jerry Johnson		28.23
Turnout			874,555
	hold

Hawaii

Incumbent Democrat Daniel Inouye won re-election to a third term over Populist challenger James D. Kimmel.

Template:Election box majority no change

1974 United States Senate election in Hawaii Results

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
		Daniel Inouye (Incumbent)		82.91
		James D. Kimmel		17.09
Turnout			250,221
	hold

Idaho

Incumbent Democrat Frank Church won re-election to a fourth term in office, defeating Republican Bob Smith.

Template:Election box majority no change

1974 United States Senate election in Idaho Results

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
		Frank Church (Incumbent)		56.07
		Robert L. Smith		42.14
		Jean Stoddard		1.79
Turnout			258,847
	hold

Illinois

Incumbent Democratic U.S. Senator Adlai Stevenson III, who was first elected in a special election in 1970, was re-elected to a second term in office, defeating Republican George Burditt by a large margin of nearly 800,000 votes.

Template:Election box majority no change

1974 United States Senate election in Illinois Results

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
		Adlai Stevenson III (Incumbent)		62.15
		George M. Burditt		37.22
		Edward Thomas Heisler		0.43
		Ishmael Flory		0.20
Turnout			2,914,666
	hold

Indiana

Incumbent Democratic U.S. Senator Birch Bayh was re-elected to a third consecutive term in office, defeating Mayor of Indianapolis Richard Lugar.

Template:Election box majority no change

1974 United States Senate election in Indiana Results

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
		Birch Bayh (Incumbent)		50.73
		Richard Lugar		46.44
		Don L. Lee		2.83
Turnout			1,752,978
	hold

Iowa

Incumbent Democratic U.S. Senator Harold E. Hughes retired instead of seeking a second term. This open seat was won by five-term U.S. Representative John C. Culver, defeating Republican State Representative David M. Stanley. Culver defeated Stanley by a margin of nearly five points.

Template:Election box majority no change

1974 United States Senate election in Iowa Results

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
		John Culver		52.04
		David M. Stanley		47.28
		Lorin E. Oxley		0.68
				0.00
Turnout
	hold

Kansas

U.S. Senator Bob Dole was first elected in 1968 after Frank Carlson retired by a margin of 60-39% over his Democratic opponent. However, in 1974 he faced a closer challenge as he sought a second term. Dole was closely associated with Richard Nixon as chairman of the Republican National Committee from 1971-1972. Dole himself even admitted he was "prepared to lose" the election to William R. Roy, a Topeka physician and two-term Representative from Kansas's 2nd Congressional District. Roy's advertisements contrasted Dole, "who put loyalty to Nixon and his party ahead of loyalty to his state," with Roy, a moderate and former Republican whom they described as "a respected voice for Kansas." Roy's campaign to be the first Democratic Senator from Kansas in decades received an enthusiastic response, and he led in polling for months. "I could go to any event and feel like Caesar coming back to Rome," Roy said. Still, Dole's campaign capitalized on the issue of abortion rights, which was fresh on voters minds in the wake of the Roe v. Wade decision. Roy himself had performed abortions as a physician, and Dole used this to build momentum and overtake Roy in polling.

In the end, Dole narrowly prevailed over Roy by 15,533 votes in the closest election of his 35-year Congressional career.

Template:Election box candidate no changeTemplate:Election box majority no change

1974 United States Senate election in Kansas Results

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
		Bob Dole (Incumbent)		50.85
		William R. Roy		49.15
Turnout			794,437
	hold

Kentucky

Incumbent Republican U.S. Senator Marlow Cook ran for a second term in office but was defeated by Democratic Governor of Kentucky Wendell Ford.

Template:Election box majority no change

1974 United States Senate election in Kentucky Results

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
		Wendell Ford		53.56
		Marlow Cook (Incumbent)		44.08
		William E. Parker		2.36
Turnout			744,698
	gain from

Louisiana

Incumbent Democratic Senator Russell B. Long was unopposed for re-election to a sixth term in office.

Democratic primary

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
		Russell Long (Incumbent)		74.75
		Sherman A. Bernard		18.89
		Annie Smart		6.37
Total votes				100.00

1974 United States Senate election in Louisiana Results

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
		Russell B. Long (Incumbent)		100.00
	hold

Maryland

Incumbent Republican Charles Mathias won re-election to a second term. As a Republican representing heavily-Democratic Maryland, Mathias faced a potentially difficult re-election bid for the 1974 election. State Democrats nominated Barbara Mikulski, then a Baltimore City Councilwoman who was well-known to residents in her city as a social activist, but with limited name recognition in the rest of the state. Mathias was renominated by Republicans, fending off a primary election challenge from conservative doctor Ross Pierpont. Pierpont was never a substantial threat to Mathias, whose lack of competition was due in part to fallout from the Watergate scandal.

As an advocate for campaign finance reform, Mathias refused to accept any contribution over $100 to "avoid the curse of big money that has led to so much trouble in the last year". However, he still managed to raise over $250,000, nearly five times Mikulski's total. Ideologically, Mikulski and Mathias agreed on many issues, such as closing tax loopholes and easing taxes on the middle class. On two issues, however, Mathias argued to reform Congress and the U.S. tax system to address inflation and corporate price fixing, contrary to Mikulski. In retrospect, The Washington Post felt the election was "an intelligent discussion of state, national, and foreign affairs by two smart, well-informed people".

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1974 United States Senate election in Maryland

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
		Charles Mathias (Incumbent)		57.3
		Barbara A. Mikulski		42.7
Total votes				100.00
	hold

Missouri

Thomas Eagleton was first elected in 1968, defeating incumbent U.S. senator Edward V. Long in an upset three-way primary victory. He then defeated Republican Representative Thomas B. Curtis by just over two percentage points. Eagleton served as the initial vice presidential nominee for George McGovern's campaign against incumbent Richard Nixon in 1972. However, Eagleton resigned from the ticket and was replaced by Sargent Shriver after reports surfaced that Eagleton had received electroshock therapy for clinical depression. McGovern, who was trailing Nixon badly in the polls, requested Eagleton's resignation.

Despite negative publicity from his vice presidential nomination withdrawal, Eagleton cruised to re-election in a rematch over Curtis, taking over 60% of the vote. This would be Eagleton's largest victory margin for U.S. Senate. In 1980, he faced a close re-election battle against Gene McNary, winning by only about 5 percentage points.

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1974 United States Senate election in Missouri Results

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
		Thomas Eagleton (Incumbent)		60.07
		Thomas B. Curtis		39.28
	Independent	Cliff Talmage		0.65
Turnout			1,224,303
	hold

Nevada

Incumbent Democrat Alan Bible decided to retire instead of seeking a fifth term. Republican nominee Paul Laxalt won the open seat.

Former Governor Paul Laxalt won by less than 700 votes, becoming one of the few bright spots in a bad year for Republicans. He beat Lieutenant Governor Harry Reid. Reid would succeed Laxalt twelve years later.

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General election

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
		Harry Reid	78,981	46.60
		Jack C. Doyle	10,887	6.42
Majority			624	0.37
Turnout			169,473
	gain from

New Hampshire

The New Hampshire election resulted in the longest contested election for the U.S. Congress in United States history.

In 1973, then-incumbent senator Norris Cotton announced he would not seek re-election. Republican strategists admitted that it would be tough for their party to hold on to the seat.

The campaign of 1974 pitted Democrat John A. Durkin, who had served as New Hampshire's Insurance Commissioner and as Attorney General, against Republican Louis C. Wyman, a conservative, widely known member of the United States House of Representatives from New Hampshire's 1st congressional district. As Wyman was the more experienced politician, he was predicted by many to win handily.

On election day, Wyman won with a margin of just 355 votes. Durkin immediately demanded a recount, which, completed November 27, 1974, declared Durkin the winner by a margin of 10 votes. Republican Governor Meldrim Thomson Jr. awarded Durkin a provisional certificate of election. However, Wyman demanded another recount in which he prevailed by two votes.

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New Hampshire United States Senate Election, 1974: Second Recount

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
		Louis Wyman		49.6618
		John A. Durkin		49.6609
		Carmen C. Chimento		0.68

Wyman promptly appealed to the New Hampshire State Ballot Law Commission. Durkin tried to defeat the appeal in the New Hampshire courts. The state ballot commission conducted its own partial recount and announced on December 24, 1974, that Wyman had won by just two votes. Governor Thomson rescinded Durkin’s certificate, and awarded a new credential to Wyman.

Senator Cotton resigned on December 31, 1974, and Governor Thomson appointed Wyman to fill the remainder of the term, which would expire January 3, 1975.

The election contest was not settled, however, and eventually a new election would be called in 1975.

New York

Incumbent Republican U.S. Senator Jacob Javits won against Democratic challenger Ramsey Clark in a three way election.

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1974 United States Senate election in New York Results

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
		Jacob Javits (Incumbent)		45.32
		Ramsey Clark		38.23
		Barbara A. Keating		15.93
		Rebecca Finch		0.15
		Robert E. Massi		0.08
		Mildred Edelman		0.08
		Elijah C. Boyd Jr.		0.07
Turnout			5,163,450
	hold

North Carolina

Incumbent Democrat Sam Ervin chose to retire. The general election was fought between the Democratic nominee Robert Morgan and the Republican nominee William Stevens.

Democratic primary

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
		Robert Morgan		50.40
		Nick Galifianakis		32.43
		Henry Wilson		11.49
		James Johnson		1.05
		Others		4.64
Turnout			585,326

Republican primary

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
		William Stevens		65.12
		Wood Hall Young		28.08
		B. E. Sweatt		6.80
Turnout			95,857

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General election

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
		William Stevens	386,720	37.57
	Independent		8,974	0.87
Turnout			1,029,341
Majority			246,927	23.99
	hold		Swing

North Dakota

Incumbent Republican Milton Young was re-elected to his sixth term, defeating North Dakota Democratic-NPL Party candidate William L. Guy, a former Governor of North Dakota.

Only Young filed as a Republican, and the endorsed Democratic candidate was William L. Guy of Bismarck, North Dakota, who had served as Governor of the state from 1961 to 1973; and had presumably left the office to seek the senate seat. Young and Guy won the primary elections for their respective parties. Guy, who was very popular as governor throughout the state, and Young, who had a high approval rating as senator for the state, created the closest ever election for one of North Dakota's senate seats. Young won the election by only 177 votes, and Guy retired from politics.

Two independent candidates, James R. Jungroth and Kenneth C. Gardner, also filed before the deadline. Jungroth's platform was based on his opposition to strip mining the state's coal reserves. Gardner would later run for the state's other seat in 1988 against then incumbent Quentin Burdick.

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1974 United States Senate election in North Dakota

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
		Milton R. Young (Incumbent)		48.45
		William L. Guy		48.37
	Independent	James R. Jungroth		2.82
	Independent	Kenneth C. Gardiner		0.36
Turnout			237,059
	hold

Ohio

Incumbent Democrat Howard Metzenbaum was running for election to a full term after he was appointed in 1974 by Ohio governor John J. Gilligan to fill out the Senate term of William B. Saxbe, who had resigned to become United States Attorney General. Metzenbaum lost the primary election to retired astronaut John Glenn, who went on to win the general election and win every county in the state over Republican Ralph Perk, Mayor of Cleveland.

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1974 OH United States Senate election

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
		John Glenn		64.6
		Ralph Perk		30.7
	Independent	Kathleen G. Harroff		2.6
	Independent	Richard B. Kay		2.1
	Independent	John O'Neill		0.0
	Independent	Ronald E. Girkins		0.0
Turnout			2,987,606
	hold

Oklahoma

Incumbent Republican Henry Bellmon narrowly won re-election to a second term, beating Representative Ed Edmondson by nearly 4,000 votes.

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General election

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
		Henry Bellmon (Incumbent)		49.4
		Ed Edmondson		48.9
	Independent	Paul E. Trent		1.7
Turnout			791,809
	hold

Oregon

Incumbent Republican Bob Packwood won re-election to a second term. Betty Roberts was chosen to replace former U.S. senator Wayne Morse, who won the Democratic primary but died before the general election.

File:Wayne Morse.jpg

Wayne Morse won the Democratic primary, but died prior to the general election.

The Democratic primaries were held on May 28, 1974. Incumbent senator Bob Packwood was running for re-election after his upset victory against popular incumbent Democrat Wayne Morse in 1968 made him the youngest member of the Senate.

In the Democratic primary, former senator Morse, trying to win back the seat he had for 24 years before losing to Packwood six years earlier, faced Oregon State Senate President Jason Boe and several other candidates for a chance to take back his Senate seat. Boe, who was 45, made Morse's age, 73, an issue in the race while Morse said his experience in the Senate made him a stronger candidate. Boe called for a series of debates around the state, but Morse refused. He went on to defeat Boe 49% to 39%, and planned to use the same strategy in the general election against Packwood, whose narrow victory over Morse 6 years earlier was attributed to Packwood's superior performance at a debate in Portland late in the campaign.

Democratic primary for the United States Senate from Oregon, 1974

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
		Wayne Morse		48.98
		Jason Boe		39.33
		Robert T. Daly		6.88
		Robert E. O'Connor		4.71
		(Scattering)		0.10
Total votes				100.00

In July, Morse was hospitalized in Portland with what was originally described as a serious urinary tract infection. His condition deteriorated and he died on July 22. The death was originally reported to have been caused by kidney failure, but it was later revealed that Morse died of leukemia; Boe apparently knew of the diagnosis during the campaign but did not make it a campaign issue.

The Oregon Democratic State Central Committee met on August 11, two days after Richard Nixon resigned the Presidency. They chose State senator Betty Roberts over Boe to replace Morse as the Democratic nominee. Roberts, an Oregon State Senator, had run for the Democratic nomination for Governor that year, but lost in the May primary to eventual general election winner Robert W. Straub.

Outgoing Oregon governor Tom McCall, who had decided not to run in 1968, had pledged to Packwood a year earlier that he would not challenge him in 1974. But as his term as governor ended, McCall began reconsidering his decision, believing he would bring more integrity to the job. In March 1974, at a dinner party held at Packwood's Washington D.C. home in McCall's honor, McCall informed Packwood that he would challenge him. The news of McCall's change of plans soon reached the media. Eventually, McCall decided that he had little chance against Packwood, who had similar positions to his own and had a reputation for ruthless campaigning that McCall did not share. McCall did not run, and Packwood was unopposed in the Republican primary.

Strong Democratic gains were predicted, giving Roberts a good chance at an upset. In addition, the Senate had no female members and Roberts was one of three women (along with Barbara Mikulski in Maryland and Gwenyfred Bush in South Carolina) seeking a Senate seat. But on the issues, Packwood and Roberts shared many positions, such as on abortion, military spending, and the environment. Moreover, Packwood had distanced himself from Watergate, calling for Nixon's impeachment and denouncing Gerald Ford's pardon of Nixon. Roberts was also at a financial disadvantage, having entered the race late and facing debt from her failed gubernatorial run; Packwood was able to use money he had raised for a primary challenge that never materialized, and led in most polls by a double-digit margin.

Roberts lost the election to Packwood 54% to 44%. Packwood was the only Oregon Republican up for re-election to keep his seat: Democrats won every other available seat. In the Governor's race, Bob Straub, who beat Roberts in the Democratic primary, defeated Vic Atiyeh to become the first elected Democratic governor since 1956; in the U. S. House of Representatives races, Les AuCoin won an open seat in the 1st district and in the 4th district, Jim Weaver upset incumbent John Dellenback.

After the election, Roberts, whose criticism of Packwood's ethics was a theme in her campaign, considered filing a lawsuit against Packwood for misrepresenting her positions on gun control, abortion, and Social Security in campaign advertisements, but later dropped the idea.

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1974 United States Senate election in Oregon

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
		Bob Packwood (Incumbent)		54.93
		Betty Roberts		44.18
Total votes				100.00
	hold

Pennsylvania

Incumbent Republican Richard Schweiker won re-election, defeating Democratic nominee Peter F. Flaherty, Mayor of Pittsburgh.

In the general election campaign, Schweiker faced popular Pittsburgh mayor Peter Flaherty. Both candidates, as highlighted by a New York Times article, "[took] firm stands against inflation, recession, big spending by the Federal Government and abortion on demand." Schweiker, who was endorsed by the AFL–CIO, distanced himself from the Richard Nixon administration, specifically the Watergate scandal, by emphasizing his early calls for Nixon's resignation and the fact that he was on Nixon's "enemies list."

In the end, Schweiker won re-election with 53% of the popular vote, with Flaherty winning 45.9%. Schweiker carried 53 of Pennsylvania's counties, a decrease from the 59 counties he carried in the 1968 election. Flaherty had a strong showing in Allegheny County, which contains his home town of Pittsburgh, which Schweiker had won in 1968. The final election results represented a political divide between the eastern and western portions of the state, Schweiker in the east and Flaherty in the west, with the exception of Flaherty's slim 4,491 vote victory in Philadelphia.

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Pennsylvania United States Senate Election, 1974

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
		Richard Schweiker (Incumbent)		53.00
		Peter F. Flaherty		45.89
		George W. Shankey		1.09
Turnout			3,477,812
	hold

South Carolina

The 1974 South Carolina United States Senate election was held on November 5, 1974 to select the U.S. Senator from the state of South Carolina. Incumbent Democratic senator Fritz Hollings easily defeated Republican challenger Gwen Bush to win his third term. Both Hollings and Bush faced no opposition in their party's primaries which allowed both candidates to concentrate solely on the general election. The Watergate scandal caused the Republicans to perform poorly nationwide in 1974 and Gwen Bush was little more than a sacrificial lamb. The main focus of the voters in South Carolina was on the competitive gubernatorial contest and Hollings easily cruised to a comfortable re-election.

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South Carolina U.S. Senate Election, 1974

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
		Gwen Bush	146,649	28.7
	Independent	Harold Hough	9,624	1.9
Majority			208,458	40.7
Turnout			511,380	51.3
	Democratic hold

South Dakota

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1974 United States Senate election in South Dakota Results

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
		George McGovern (Incumbent)		53.04
		Leo K. Thorsness		46.96
Turnout			278,884
	hold

Utah

Incumbent Republican U.S. Senator Wallace F. Bennett did not run for re-election to a fifth term, but retired. Salt Lake City mayor Jake Garn won the Republican nomination, while U.S. representative Wayne Owens won the Democratic nomination. Garn defeated Owens, 50% to 44%, with third-party candidate Bruce Bangerter winning 6% of the vote.

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1974 United States Senate election in Utah Results

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
		Jake Garn		49.99
		Wayne Owens		44.07
		Bruce Bangerter		5.94
Turnout			420,642
	hold

Vermont

Incumbent Republican George Aiken did not run for re-election to another term in the United States Senate. Democratic candidate, attorney and prosecutor Patrick Leahy defeated the Republican candidate, congressman Richard W. Mallary to succeed him. Leahy was the first Democrat ever elected to the senate from Vermont.

Republican primary election

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
		Richard W. Mallary		59.1
		Charles R. Ross		35.8
		T. Serse Ambrosini		4.9
		Other		0.1
Total votes				100.0

Democratic primary election

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
		Patrick Leahy		83.9
		Nathaniel Frothingham		15.7
		Other		0.4
Total votes				100.0

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1974 United States Senate election in Vermont

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
		Patrick Leahy		49.47
		Richard W. Mallary		46.38
		Bernie Sanders		4.13
Total votes				100.0
	gain from Template:Yesno		Swing

Washington

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1974 United States Senate election in Washington Results

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
		Warren Magnuson (Incumbent)		60.70
		Jack Metcalf		36.08
		Gene Goosman		1.97
		Clare Fraenzl		0.81
		Pat Ruckert		0.43
Turnout			1,007,847
	hold

Wisconsin

Incumbent Democrat Gaylord Nelson won re-election to a third term over Tom Petri, State senator since 1973.

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General election

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
		Gaylord Nelson (Incumbent)		61.8
		Tom Petri		35.8
		Gerald L. McFarren		2.0
Turnout			1,199,426
	hold

See also

• 1974 United States elections
  • 1974 United States gubernatorial elections
  • 1974 United States House of Representatives elections
• 93rd United States Congress
• 94th United States Congress
• Watergate Babies
• Watergate scandal

References

• Tibbetts, Donn. The Closest U.S. Senate Race in History, Durkin v. Wyman. [Manchester, N.H.]: J.W. Cummings Enterprises, 1976.