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1972 United States Senate election in Mississippi

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1972 United States Senate election in Mississippi

← 1966 November 7, 1972 1978 →
 
Nominee James Eastland Gil Carmichael
Party Democratic Republican
Popular vote 375,102 249,779
Percentage 58.09% 38.68%

County results
Eastland:      40-50%      50-60%      60-70%      70-80%      80-90%
Carmichael:      40-50%      50-60%

U.S. senator before election

James Eastland
Democratic

Elected U.S. Senator

James Eastland
Democratic

The 1972 United States Senate election in Mississippi was held on November 7, 1972. Incumbent Democratic U.S. Senator James Eastland won re-election to his sixth term. To date, this was the last time that the Democrats won the Class 2 Senate seat in Mississippi. Mississippi was one of fifteen states alongside Alabama, Arkansas, Colorado, Delaware, Georgia, Iowa, Louisiana, Maine, Minnesota, Montana, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, South Dakota and West Virginia that were won by Republican President Richard Nixon in 1972 that elected Democrats to the United States Senate.

Democratic primary

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Candidates

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Declared

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  • James Eastland, incumbent Senator
  • Louis Fondren, State Representative[1]
  • Taylor Webb, president of the Mississippi Economic Council[1]

Withdrew

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  • C. L. McKinley, pipefitter[1] (to run as an independent candidate)

Results

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1972 Democratic U.S. Senate primary[2]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic James Eastland (inc.) 203,847 70.23%
Democratic Taylor Webb 67,656 23.21%
Democratic Louis Fondren 18,753 6.46%
Total votes 290,256 100.00%

Republican primary

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Candidates

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Campaign

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Meredith ran as an anti-Nixon candidate, while Carmichael supported President Nixon's re-election.[1]

Results

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1972 Republican U.S. Senate primary[3]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Gil Carmichael 18,369 79.08%
Republican James Meredith 4,859 20.92%
Total votes 23,228 100.00%

General election

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Candidates

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Results

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Mississippi U.S. Senate Election, 1972[4]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Democratic James Eastland (inc.) 375,102 58.09% Decrease 7.47
Republican Gil Carmichael 249,779 38.68% Increase11.98
Independent Prentiss Walker 14,662 2.27% N/A
Independent C.L.McKinley 6,203 0.96% N/A

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b c d e "Eastland to Face 3 Rivals in Primary". The New York Times. April 9, 1972. Retrieved August 17, 2019.
  2. ^ "MS US Senate - D Primary". OurCampaigns. Retrieved August 16, 2019.
  3. ^ "MS US Senate - R Primary". OurCampaigns. Retrieved August 16, 2019.
  4. ^ "Our Campaigns - MS US Senate Race - Nov 07, 1972".