1978 United States Senate election in Mississippi
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The 1978 United States Senate election in Mississippi was held on November 7, 1978. Incumbent Democratic U.S. Senator James Eastland decided to retire.
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November 7, 1978
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Cochran: 30–40% 40–50% 50–60% 60–70% Dantin: 30–40% 40–50% 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% Evers: 30–40% 40–50% 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% | |||||||||||||||||||||
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Republican Thad Cochran won the open seat, becoming the first Republican to win a U.S. Senate election in Mississippi since the end of Reconstruction in 1881.[1] It was also the first time since 1877 that a Republican won this Senate seat.
Democratic primary
Candidates
- Maurice Dantin, former District Attorney[2]
- Cliff Finch, Governor of Mississippi
- Robert L. Robinson
- Charles L. Sullivan, former Lieutenant Governor of Mississippi
- Richard C. Tedford
- Bill Waller, former Governor of Mississippi
- Helen M. Williams
Results
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Maurice Dantin | 102,968 | 29.01% | |
| Democratic | Cliff Finch | 98,751 | 27.83% | |
| Democratic | Charles L. Sullivan | 78,702 | 22.18% | |
| Democratic | William L. Waller | 74,465 | 20.98% | |
| Democratic | Robert L. Robinson | 15,879 | 4.20% | |
| Democratic | Richard C. Tedford | 4,201 | 1.11% | |
| Democratic | Helen M. Williams | 2,937 | 0.78% | |
| Total votes | 377,903 | 100.00% | ||
Runoff results
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Maurice Dantin | 235,904 | 65.35% | |
| Democratic | Cliff Finch | 125,109 | 34.66% | |
| Total votes | 361,013 | 100% | ||
Republican primary
Candidates
- Thad Cochran, U.S. Representative from Jackson
- Charles W. Pickering, Chairman of the Mississippi Republican Party
Results
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Thad Cochran | 50,857 | 68.97% | |
| Republican | Charles W. Pickering | 22,880 | 31.03% | |
| Total votes | 73,737 | 100% | ||
General election
Candidates
- Thad Cochran, U.S. Representative from Jackson (Republican)
- Maurice Dantin, former District Attorney[2] (Democratic)
- Charles Evers, Mayor of Fayette (independent)
- Henry Jay Kirksey, civil rights activist and candidate for governor in 1975[6] (independent)
Campaign
Evers was the first African American elected since the Reconstruction era to be mayor in any Mississippi city, in 1969. He ran as an independent, and as a result his campaign divided the Democrats and allowed Cochran to win the Senate seat with a 45 percent plurality.[7] This made Cochran the first Republican in a century to win a statewide election (other than a presidential election) in Mississippi.[8] Eastland resigned on December 27, 1978, to give Cochran a seniority advantage over new incoming senators.[9]
Results
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Thad Cochran | 267,302 | 45.29% | |||
| Democratic | Maurice Dantin | 187,541 | 31.77% | |||
| Independent | Charles Evers | 133,646 | 22.64% | |||
| Independent | Henry Jay Kirksey | 1,747 | 0.30% | |||
| Republican gain from Democratic | ||||||