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1972 United States Senate election in Oregon

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1972 United States Senate election in Oregon

← 1966 November 7, 1972 1978 →
 
Nominee Mark Hatfield Wayne Morse
Party Republican Democratic
Popular vote 494,671 425,036
Percentage 53.72% 46.16%

County results
Hatfield:      50-60%      60-70%
Morse:      50–60%

U.S. senator before election

Mark Hatfield
Republican

Elected U.S. Senator

Mark Hatfield
Republican

The 1972 United States Senate election in Oregon took place on November 7, 1972. Incumbent Republican Senator Mark Hatfield was re-elected to a second term in office, defeating Democrat Wayne Morse.

Primary elections

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Primary elections were held on May 23, 1972.

Republican primary

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Candidates

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Results

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Republican primary results[4][5][6]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Mark Hatfield (incumbent) 171,594 61.16%
Republican Lynn Engdahl 63,859 22.76%
Republican Kenneth A. Brown 30,826 10.99%
Republican John E. Smets 13,397 4.78%
Write-in All others 913 0.33%
Total votes 280,589 100.00%

Democratic primary

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Candidates

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Results

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Results by county (Democratic primary):
Wayne Morse
  •   50–55%
      45–50%
      40–45%
      35–40%
Robert Duncan
  •   45–50%
      35–40%
Democratic primary results[4][5][7]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Wayne Morse 173,147 43.70%
Democratic Robert B. Duncan 130,845 33.03%
Democratic Don S. Willner 74,060 18.69%
Democratic Ralph Wiser 17,729 4.48%
Write-in All others 423 0.11%
Total votes 396,204 100.00%

General election

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Campaign

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According to the New York Times, the election provided "a choice between two well-known personalities, not issues".[8] Morse, who had supported Hatfield's 1966 campaign, was famously opposed to the Vietnam War, as was Hatfield. Thus, the election was ultimately between two well-known anti-war liberals. Hatfield won a fairly comfortable 54-46 victory, winning all but 3 counties.

Results

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1972 United States Senate election in Oregon[9][10][11][12]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Republican Mark Hatfield (Incumbent) 494,671 53.72
Democratic Wayne Morse 425,036 46.16
None Write-Ins 1,126 0.12
Majority 69,635 7.56
Turnout 920,833
Republican hold Swing {{{swing}}}

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Record number of candidates file for election". Albany Democrat-Herald. Albany, Oregon. March 15, 1972. p. 1. Retrieved July 16, 2021.
  2. ^ "Gov. McCall of Oregon Won't Oppose Hatfield". New York Times. New York, NY. March 8, 1972. p. 86. Retrieved July 16, 2021.
  3. ^ a b "Morse will oppose Hatfield". The Capital Journal. Salem, Oregon. May 24, 1972. p. 1. Retrieved July 16, 2021.
  4. ^ a b Congressional Quarterly 1998, p. 147.
  5. ^ a b America Votes 10, p. 312.
  6. ^ "OR US Senate, 1972 - R Primary". Our Campaigns. Retrieved July 16, 2021.
  7. ^ "OR US Senate, 1972 - D Primary". Our Campaigns. Retrieved July 16, 2021.
  8. ^ "THE 1972 CAMPAIGN". The New York Times. October 2, 1972.
  9. ^ Congressional Quarterly 1998, p. 95.
  10. ^ America Votes 10, p. 307.
  11. ^ "OR US Senate, 1972". Our Campaigns. Retrieved July 16, 2021.
  12. ^ Clerk of the United States House of Representatives. "Statistics of the Presidential and Congressional Election of November 7, 1972" (PDF). United States Government Printing Office. Retrieved April 4, 2015 – via Clerk.house.gov.

Bibliography

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