1968 United States Senate election in Arizona
The 1968 United States Senate election in Arizona took place on November 5, 1968. Incumbent Democratic U.S. Senator Carl Hayden did not run for reelection to an eighth term, with his longtime staff member Roy Elson running as the Democratic Party nominee to replace him. Elson was defeated by a wide margin, however, by former U.S. Senator and 1964 Republican presidential nominee Barry Goldwater. Prior to Goldwater's election, the seat had been held for decades by the Democratic Party under Carl Hayden, but after this election remained in Republican Party control continuously for 52 years, until Democrat Mark Kelly won in the 2020 special election.
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County results Goldwater: 50-60% 60-70% Elson: 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% | |||||||||||||||||
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Elections in Arizona |
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Elson had previously challenged U.S. Senator Paul Fannin in 1964, when Goldwater vacated his seat in order to run for President against Lyndon B. Johnson.
Democratic primary
Candidates
- Roy Elson, staff member to Senator Carl Hayden, 1964 Democratic nominee for U.S. Senate
- Bob Kennedy, State Treasurer of Arizona
- Dick Herbert, Corporation Commissioner
Results
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
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Democratic | Roy Elson | 95,231 | 62.78% | |
Democratic | Bob Kennedy | 41,397 | 27.29% | |
Total votes | 136,628 | 100.00 |
Republican primary
Candidates
- Barry Goldwater, former U.S. Senator, 1964 Republican Party nominee for President of the United States
General election
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
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Republican | Barry Goldwater | 274,607 | 57.22% | ||
Democratic | Roy Elson | 205,338 | 42.78% | ||
Majority | 69,269 | 14.44% | |||
Turnout | 479,945 | ||||
Republican gain from Democratic | Swing | ||||