United States Senate election in South Carolina, 1974

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The 1974 South Carolina United States Senate election was held on November 5, 1974 to select the U.S. Senator from the state of South Carolina. Incumbent Democratic Senator Fritz Hollings easily defeated Republican challenger Gwen Bush.

Contents

[edit] Primaries

Both Fritz Hollings and Gwen Bush faced no opposition in their party's primaries which allowed both candidates to concentrate solely on the general election.

[edit] General election campaign

The Watergate scandal caused the Republicans to perform poorly nationwide in 1974 and Gwen Bush was little more than a sacrificial lamb. The main focus of the voters in South Carolina was on the competitive gubernatorial contest and Fritz Hollings easily cruised to a comfortable re-election.

[edit] General election results

South Carolina U.S. Senate Election, 1974
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Democratic Fritz Hollings 355,107 69.4 +7.5
Republican Gwen Bush 146,649 28.7 -9.4
Independent Harold Hough 9,624 1.9 +1.9
Majority 208,458 40.7 +16.9
Turnout 511,380 51.3 -25.2
  Democratic hold
1974 South Carolina U.S. Senate election map      65+% won by Hollings      60%-64% won by Hollings      55%-59% won by Hollings      50%-54% won by Hollings
1974 South Carolina U.S. Senate election map      65+% won by Hollings      60%-64% won by Hollings      55%-59% won by Hollings      50%-54% won by Hollings

[edit] See also

[edit] References

  • State Election Commission (1975). Report of the South Carolina State Election Commission. Columbia, SC: State Election Commission, p. 37.