The 1968 United States Senate elections were elections for the United States Senate. Held on November 5, the 34 seats of Class 3 were contested in regular elections. They coincided with the presidential election of the same year. The Republicans picked up five net seats in the Senate. This saw Republicans win a Senate seat in Florida for the first time since Reconstruction. Republicans would gain another seat after the election when Alaska Republican Ted Stevens was appointed to replace Democrat Bob Bartlett, reducing Democrats' majority to 57–43. This is the earliest round of Senate elections in which a first-elected member is still alive (Bob Packwood, R-OR).

Results summary

Source: Clerk of the U.S. House of Representatives

Gains, losses, and holds

Retirements

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

Defeats

One Republican and seven Democrats sought re-election but lost in the primary or general election.

Post-election changes

One Democrat died on December 11, 1968, and a Republican was appointed on December 24, 1968.

Change in composition

Before the elections

After the September 10, 1968 appointment in New York.

After the general elections

Beginning of the next Congress

Race summary

Elections leading to the next Congress

In these general elections, the winners were elected for the term beginning January 3, 1969; ordered by state. All of the elections involved the Class 3 seats.

Closest races

Fifteen races had a margin of victory under 10%: Arkansas was the tipping point state with a margin of 18.3%.

Alabama

After electing Republicans post-Reconstruction, Alabama had historically voted Democratic in local, state, and presidential elections from the 1870s until the 1960s with the passage of the Civil Rights Act. However, in 1948 Alabama did not support the Democratic ticket for the first time in nearly 100 years, voting for Strom Thurmond, who ran a third-party campaign. Democrats lost ground due to the unpopularity of the Civil Rights Act among white voters, who at the time comprised nearly the entire electorate. In 1964, Barry Goldwater became the first Republican to win the state of Alabama since Ulysses Grant, while the state elected Republicans to its congressional delegation for the first time since the turn of the century. Goldwater voted against the Civil Rights Act, which boosted his popularity in Southern states. In 1962, J. Lister Hill ran for re-election to this seat to a fifth term but faced an unusually close race against Republican James D. Martin, who came within 1% of unseating the incumbent. In 1968, Republicans looked to build upon their momentum but faced a challenge when Lieutenant Governor James B. Allen, a staunch conservative, was nominated by the Democratic Party. Republicans also failed to capitalize on the candidacy of liberal Democrat Hubert H. Humphrey due to the third-party candidacy of Governor George Wallace limiting Republican support. Allen defeated Republican Perry Hooper by a wide margin in the general election and faced little opposition in 1978.

Alaska

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. 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.

Arizona

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.

Arkansas

J. William Fulbright was first elected in 1944 against token Republican opposition. He ran unopposed in 1950 and won by large margins in 1956 and 1962, but he saw his vote percentage slip in the latter. In the wake of Civil Rights legislation, which many southern whites opposed, Fulbright was re-elected in 1968 but by the smallest margin of his career. He faced Charles T. Bernard and won with just over 59% of the vote. Arkansas would not elect a Republican to this seat until 2010 with John Boozman's election.

California

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.

Colorado

Incumbent Republican Peter Dominick won election in 1962 over Democratic incumbent John A. Carroll by eight percentage points. In 1968, he increased his margin of victory against Stephen McNichols in what would be his last U.S. Senate victory. He would lose in 1974 to Gary Hart.

Connecticut

Incumbent Abraham Ribicoff was elected in 1962 after the retirement of Prescott Bush by a razor-thin 51–49 margin. He increased his margin of victory in 1968 over Republican Representative Edwin H. May Jr.

Florida

Incumbent Democrat George Smathers retired. After supporting Republicans during Reconstruction, Florida supported almost only Democrats down-ballot until the 1940s, when the state voted for Eisenhower. Claude R. Kirk Jr. was elected governor in 1966 as Republicans gained ground in the South due to Democrats shifting leftward and Republicans rightward. Popular Democrat LeRoy Collins defeated State Attorney General Earl Faircloth in the Democratic primary, while Republican Representative Edward Gurney won the Republican primary. Despite less name recognition in the state, Gurney defeated Collins by 11 points and won all but five counties.

Georgia

Democrat Herman Talmadge handily won re-election over Republican E. Earl Patton, who won the first-ever Republican primary in Georgia for U.S. Senate. 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.

Hawaii

Incumbent Daniel Inouye handily won re-election against Republican Wayne C. Thiessen with 83% of the vote.

Idaho

Incumbent Democrat Frank Church won re-election by a wide margin against George V. Hansen despite the state's overall Republican trend.

Illinois

Incumbent Republican and Minority Leader Everett Dirksen won re-election to his fourth term over William G. Clark (D), the Illinois Attorney General. He would not serve the entirety of his term as he would die in 1970.

Indiana

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.

Iowa

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.

Kansas

Incumbent Republican Frank Carlson chose to retire rather than seek re-election. Republican Bob Dole defeated Democrat William Robinson with 60% of the vote and won all but one county in the state. Still, this would be his second-worst U.S. Senate election performance after 1974 in the wake of Watergate.

Kentucky

Though originally voting strongly Democratic like the rest of the South after Reconstruction, Kentucky began electing Republicans in the 1890s but still leaned Democratic. Still, Republicans found success with the elections to U.S. Senate of Thruston Ballard Morton and John Sherman Cooper. Morton decided to retire in 1968, creating an open seat. Republican Marlow Cook narrowly defeated Democrat Katherine Peden by a 51–48 margin.

Louisiana

Incumbent Democrat Russell B. Long ran unopposed for U.S. Senate and was re-elected.

Maryland

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.

Missouri

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.

Nevada

Incumbent Alan Bible was originally elected in 1954 in a special election over Republican Ernest S. Brown. He narrowly defeated Republican Clarence Clifton Young in 1956 and won by a landslide in 1962. He defeated Republican Edward Fike by a smaller margin of 55–45 in 1968 in what would be his last term.

New Hampshire

Incumbent Norris Cotton handily won re-election against incumbent Governor John W. King in what would be his final term.

New York

Incumbent Republican Jacob Javits won against Democratic challenger Paul O'Dwyer and Conservative Party challenger James L. Buckley in a three-way election. While Javits did not face any challengers for the Republican nomination, he did face a minor one when seeking the Liberal Party of New York's nomination.

North Carolina

The general election was fought between the Democratic incumbent Sam Ervin and the Republican nominee Robert Somers. Ervin won re-election to a third full term, with over 60% of the vote. The first round of the Primary Election was held on May 4, 1968. The runoff for the Republican Party candidates took place on June 1.

North Dakota

North Dakota Republican Milton Young, sought and received re-election to his fifth term, defeating North Dakota Democratic-NPL Party candidate Herschel Lashkowitz, the mayor of Fargo, North Dakota since 1954. Only Young filed as a Republican, and the endorsed Democratic candidate was Herschel Lashkowitz of Fargo, North Dakota, who was serving as the mayor of the city since 1954. Young and Lashkowitz won the primary elections for their respective parties. One independent candidate, Duane Mutch of Larimore, North Dakota, also filed before the deadline. Mutch was later a state senator for the North Dakota Republican Party in the North Dakota Senate from 1959 to 2006 for District 19. He ran as an independent when he did not receive his party's nomination.

Ohio

Incumbent Democrat Frank J. Lausche ran for re-election but was defeated in the primary by Representative John J. Gilligan, who criticized Lausche's conservative voting record. Republican State Attorney General of Ohio William Saxbe won the Republican primary and defeated Gilligan in the general election by a 51–48 margin. He would not serve out his term after resigning to become United States Attorney general in 1974.

Oklahoma

Incumbent Democratic U.S. senator Mike Monroney was running for re-election to a fourth term, but was defeated by Republican former Governor Henry Bellmon.

Oregon

Incumbent Democrat Wayne Morse was seeking a fifth term, but narrowly lost re-election to 36-year-old Republican State Representative Bob Packwood race. The Democratic primary was held May 28, 1968. Morse defeated former Representative Robert B. Duncan, former U.S. Congressman from Oregon's 4th congressional district (1963–1967), and Phil McAlmond, millionaire and former aide to opponent Robert B. Duncan.

Pennsylvania

Incumbent Democrat Joseph Clark sought re-election to another term, but was defeated by Republican nominee Richard Schweiker, member of the U.S. House of Representatives.

South Carolina

Incumbent Democrat Fritz Hollings easily defeated Republican state senator Marshall Parker in a rematch of the election two years earlier, to win his second (his first full) term. Hollings faced no opposition from South Carolina Democrats, and avoided a primary election. Marshall Parker, the state senator from Oconee County in the Upstate, was persuaded by South Carolina Republicans to enter the race, and he did not face a primary challenge. After a close election loss to Fritz Hollings in 1966, the Republicans felt that Parker might have a chance at defeating Hollings by riding Nixon's coattails in the general election. However, the Republicans did not provide Parker with the financial resources to compete, and he subsequently lost by a bigger margin to Hollings than two years prior.

South Dakota

Incumbent Democrat George McGovern had flirted with presidential aspirations in 1968 but ultimately decided to run for re-election, defeating Republican Archie M. Gubbrud by a comfortable margin.

Utah

Incumbent Wallace F. Bennett, a Republican, won re-election to a fourth term in the U.S. Senate by a comfortable margin against Democrat Milton Weilemann.

Vermont

Incumbent Republican George Aiken ran successfully for re-election to another term in the United States Senate. Vermont voted Democratic for the first time since the 1850s for Lyndon B. Johnson in 1964. Vermont also elected Democrat Philip H. Hoff in 1962, and he served until 1969. Hoff ran a write-in campaign in the Democratic primary for this seat but lost to Republican Aiken by a wide margin. Aiken thus ran with both nominations and secured a victory. This would be once staunchly-Republican Vermont's last time to support a Republican for this seat. In 1974, Patrick Leahy would win and become the first Democratic Senator from Vermont.

Washington

Incumbent Warren G. Magnuson won re-election by a wide margin against his Republican opponent Metcalf.

Wisconsin

Incumbent Democrat Gaylord A. Nelson (U.S. senator since 1963) defeated Republican State Senator Jerris Leonard.