United States Senate election in Florida, 1968
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The Florida United States Senate election of 1968 was marked by election of first Republican to the United States Senate from Florida since Reconstruction.
Democratic three-term incumbent George Smathers decided to not seek re-election in order to run for the Democratic presidential nomination.
Former popular two-term Governor LeRoy Collins won Democratic nomination, while Representative Edward J. Gurney became Republican candidate.
Gurney was much lesser-know than Collins, but he won by over 11% margin. It is possible that Richard Nixon's victory in the presidential race (including winning Florida) helped Gurney defeat Collins.
| Florida United States Senate election, 1968 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
| Republican | Edward J. Gurney | 1,131,499 | 55.90 | ||
| Democratic | LeRoy Collins | 892,637 | 44.10 | ||
| Republican gain from Democratic | Swing | ||||
